Indians 161 for 5 (Parthiv 40, Rohit 29, Joshua Cobb 2-22) beat Leicestershire 146 for 7 (Andrew McDonald 44, R Vinay Kumar 3-29, A Mishra 2-19) by 15 runs
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File photo: R Vinay Kumar's three wickets scuppered Leicestershire's chase © Associated Press
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Players/Officials: Vinay Kumar
Matches: Leicestershire v Indians at Leicester
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Teams: England | India | Leicestershire
R Vinay Kumar bowled fast, slow and smart to finish with a three-wicket haul that helped the Indians complete a hat-trick of wins in three warm-up matches in five days, providing a much-needed boost ahead of the lone Twenty20 international against England at Old Trafford on Wednesday.
After a series of cameos pushed the Indians to 161, Leicestershire started on a positive note and were 48 for 1 by the end of the Powerplay. But Suresh Raina, leading the visitors in the absence of a resting MS Dhoni, used his bowlers cleverly, rotating the trio of R Ashwin, Amit Mishra and Vinay to put the brakes on the chase. The hosts required 33 runs from the final two overs, but Ashwin and Vinay gave them no room to play their shots and conceded just 17 runs.
The fall of Joshua Cobb, hero of Leicestershire's triumph in the Friends Life t20 on Saturday, in the first over did not deter the tall pairing of Andrew McDonald and Will Jefferson. They had little trouble against Varun Aaron, regarded as India's fastest bowler, during his spell from the Bennett end. Aaron started off with a half volley which McDonald punched to the cover boundary. Aaron responded with a slower delivery, but the ball skimmed McDonald's pads for four leg byes. A ball later Aaron once again faltered with his line, swinging it too far down the leg side, allowing McDonald to easily glance another four.
Aaron's problems continued when he failed to intercept a straight drive from Jefferson at long-on, gifting Leicestershire a boundary. Aaron came back from the Pavilion end, but his misery was far from over. Jefferson hit the Indian seamer over long-off for a four and then McDonald lofted him over cover for a six that bounced onto Milligan Road. Aaron, a last-minute replacement for Ishant Sharma, had joined the Indian squad only two days ago. He was rusty but finished the over by firing in a short ball that beat McDonald for pace.
Against the spinners, Jefferson made use of his 6'10" height to try to kill the turn. In Mishra's first over he swatted the legspinner past long-on for a four and then lofted another boundary over mid-off. While trying to sweep Mishra, though, he was beaten by the flight and was trapped plumb lbw.
Raina shuffled his slow bowlers well and the spin pair of Mishra and Ashwin slowed down the Leicestershire train. Vinay chipped in as well, keeping a tight off-stump line and had James Taylor, who tried hitting across the line to an outswinger, caught behind. McDonald, a bit anxious to seize control, smashed Vinay for two fours but the bowler hit back by delivering a slower ball in his next over that beat McDonald's attempted slog and crashed into the stumps.
At that stage Leicestershire needed 78 from 52. With Abdul Razzaq walking in, the Leicestershire fans still kept the faith given his ability to destroy the best of bowling attacks. Razzaq started by crashing Rohit Sharma towards the straight boundary. When Praveen Kumar pitched short on the off stump, Razzaq came up with a tennis-like high forehand, forcing Praveen to take evasive action as the ball zipped to the left of his head, for a straight four.
But with Paul Nixon, playing his farewell match at Grace Road and in England, finding it hard to connect at the other end, the asking-rate was peaking. Leicestershire needed 59 from the last five overs but 14 runs including two savage uppercuts by Razzaq to the point boundary from Aaron's third over raised hopes. Next over he slogged Praveen over cow corner for another six.
Razzaq swept the first delivery of the penultimate over for a couple but perished trying to hit over deep square leg where he was caught by Virat Kohli. Leicestershire's challenge was virtually over and then Vinay gave just eight runs in the final over.
Like with their bowling, the Indians' batting also had several players making small but significant contributions. Parthiv Patel and Ajinkya Rahane started confidently, and though Parthiv rushed into his shots, desperate to make a quick impact, the fluency of Rahane caught the eye.
Rahane, a late replacement for Virender Sehwag, who had to return home after the Test series, rolled his wrists neatly to glance a full, inswinging delivery from Matthew Hoggard to the fine-leg boundary. When Razzaq bowled short he pulled him strongly for another four. Trying to rush into another short delivery, this time on the off stump, he could only steer into the hands of the short third-man.
Rahul Dravid ran hard during his near-run-a-ball 29 to keep the score ticking steadily before a late charge by Rohit, which included consecutive sixes off the medium pace of Wayne White, took India to a challenging total.
Tuesday 30 August 2011
Depleted India seek new start
A week of relative downtime, and India's tour of England is finally up and running. Three low-key county fixtures - against Sussex, Kent and Leicestershire - have given a bruised squad a chance to rediscover that winning feeling, and with a trio of hard-earned victories to fall back on, attention now turns to the one-day leg of their campaign, starting with the one-off Twenty20 at Old Trafford on Wednesday.
As far as India are concerned, a change ought to be as good as a rest. A chance to swap their benighted whites for their familiar pale-blue one-day outfits is an opportunity to draw a line under their shortcomings of the Test series, and revert to the mindset of champions. After all, less than five months have elapsed since that night of nights in Mumbai, and no matter how poorly they may have fared in the interim, they'll always have that achievement to fall back on.
Wednesday's fixture, however, is unlikely to prove much about the mindset of either set of players. In Twenty20 cricket, it is England, not India, who are the reigning world champions, although their squad has little in common with the one that triumphed in the Caribbean in 2010, and has been selected very much with a view to next year's defence in Sri Lanka.
A trio of youngsters - Alex Hales, Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes - are vying for an opportunity to present their credentials, under the leadership of Stuart Broad, whose captaincy career started edgily against Sri Lanka in June, but will doubtless have benefitted from an injection of confidence courtesy of his Man of the Series performance in the Tests against India.
As for India's line-up, it's a pragmatic blend of old and new. Sachin Tendulkar will sit this match out, but Rahul Dravid, at the age of 38, will make his T20I debut - in recognition, perhaps, of the liveliness of English wickets and the fallibility of some of his batting colleagues against the moving ball. With no Yuvraj Singh, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, Gautam Gambhir or Harbhajan Singh, among others, there's an air of experimentation on display in India's selection. But, ahead of the serious business in the ODIs, this is clearly the game in which to test the water.
Form guide
(Most recent first)
England LLWWW
India WWWWL
In the spotlight
In the build-up to their triumphant World Twenty20 in the Caribbean, England stumbled upon a pair of hard-hitting openers in Craig Kieswetter and Michael Lumb almost by chance. The challenge, with a year to go until the defence of their title, is to find a combination that can prove equally as explosive. Kieswetter endures, even though his problems against the moving ball appear to hamper his effectiveness in English conditions, but Lumb appeared to bid farewell in a flaccid final outing in Bristol. Into the breach, therefore, steps the young Nottinghamshire slugger, Alex Hales, whose raw power has proven effective even in the naturally swinging environment of Trent Bridge. At the age of 22, his time is now.
It's a young man's game, so they say, but not if that man in question is Rahul Dravid. Back in 2007, when India first fell in love with Twenty20 cricket, Dravid was one of a raft of senior players, along with Tendulkar, who did not play in the epoch-changing victory in South Africa. He didn't even play in India's last World Cup victory, the 50-over version in India, but now, with his country in need of a solid batting presence on the most abject of tours, he's finally been given his bow. In the circumstances, it's little surprise he's announced his retirement from the limited-overs game at the end of this tour. But before then, we'll have a chance to see one of the game's smoothest operators get to grips with the rough and tumble of the fastest format.
Team news
With the probable selection of Alex Hales at the top of the order, England are set to field their 19th opening partnership in 38 Twenty20s. The bowling attack is set to have a familiar look to it, with Jade Dernbach's performance in a rain-reduced game against Ireland having cemented his value in the shortest form of the game. Jos Buttler, who once again demonstrated his big-hitting credentials for Somerset on Twenty20 finals day, could find himself squeezed out of the reckoning by fellow newcomer, Ben Stokes.
England: (possible) 1 Craig Kieswetter (wk), 2 Alex Hales, 3 Kevin Pietersen, 4 Eoin Morgan, 5 Ravi Bopara, 6 Ben Stokes/Jos Buttler, 7 Samit Patel, 8 Tim Bresnan, 9 Stuart Broad (capt), 10 Graeme Swann, 11 Jade Dernbach.
Dravid's debut coincides with the end of Gautam Gambhir's tour. He has not been himself since thwacking his head on the Oval turf while dropping Kevin Pietersen in the fourth Test, and has finally bowed out of the tour with concussion. Parthiv Patel, the diminutive keeper who made his name on the 2002 tour of England, is set to open the innings, with a twin spin attack of Amit Mishra and R Ashwin also likely to get an outing.
India: (possible) 1 Parthiv Patel, 2 Rahul Dravid, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Rohit Sharma, 5 Suresh Raina, 6 MS Dhoni (capt/wk), 7 Amit Mishra, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Praveen Kumar, 10 Munaf Patel, 11 R Vinay Kumar.
Pitch and conditions
Old Trafford had a reputation as being one of the quickest decks in world cricket, until the square was rotated as part of the ground's redevelopment. Since then, the pitch conditions have been somewhat subcontinental, although that didn't aid Sri Lanka in their ODI-series-deciding loss earlier in the season. The weather, ever a factor in Manchester, is set fair. Which is nice.
Stats and trivia
England's most recent Twenty20 against India came at Lord's in the 2009 World Twenty20, when Ryan Sidebottom's aggression on a lively pitch helped to defend a middling total of 153 for 7.
The only other Twenty20 between the two teams came in Durban in September 2007, a match made unforgettable by Yuvraj Singh's six sixes in an over off England's current captain, Stuart Broad. Yuvraj finished with 58 from 16 balls, as England were knocked out of the World Twenty20 in the group stages.
Quotes
"The Test series is hard to forget because from an England point of view we played very well and confidence is high. But it's different in the white-ball game, they have a few new players and we have to be aware of that.."
Stuart Broad knows England cannot take their Test dominance for granted
"He went to an eye specialist today and it seems he continues to suffer from concussion."
Shivlal Yadav, India's manager, on the end of Gautam Gambhir's tour
As far as India are concerned, a change ought to be as good as a rest. A chance to swap their benighted whites for their familiar pale-blue one-day outfits is an opportunity to draw a line under their shortcomings of the Test series, and revert to the mindset of champions. After all, less than five months have elapsed since that night of nights in Mumbai, and no matter how poorly they may have fared in the interim, they'll always have that achievement to fall back on.
Wednesday's fixture, however, is unlikely to prove much about the mindset of either set of players. In Twenty20 cricket, it is England, not India, who are the reigning world champions, although their squad has little in common with the one that triumphed in the Caribbean in 2010, and has been selected very much with a view to next year's defence in Sri Lanka.
A trio of youngsters - Alex Hales, Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes - are vying for an opportunity to present their credentials, under the leadership of Stuart Broad, whose captaincy career started edgily against Sri Lanka in June, but will doubtless have benefitted from an injection of confidence courtesy of his Man of the Series performance in the Tests against India.
As for India's line-up, it's a pragmatic blend of old and new. Sachin Tendulkar will sit this match out, but Rahul Dravid, at the age of 38, will make his T20I debut - in recognition, perhaps, of the liveliness of English wickets and the fallibility of some of his batting colleagues against the moving ball. With no Yuvraj Singh, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, Gautam Gambhir or Harbhajan Singh, among others, there's an air of experimentation on display in India's selection. But, ahead of the serious business in the ODIs, this is clearly the game in which to test the water.
Form guide
(Most recent first)
England LLWWW
India WWWWL
In the spotlight
In the build-up to their triumphant World Twenty20 in the Caribbean, England stumbled upon a pair of hard-hitting openers in Craig Kieswetter and Michael Lumb almost by chance. The challenge, with a year to go until the defence of their title, is to find a combination that can prove equally as explosive. Kieswetter endures, even though his problems against the moving ball appear to hamper his effectiveness in English conditions, but Lumb appeared to bid farewell in a flaccid final outing in Bristol. Into the breach, therefore, steps the young Nottinghamshire slugger, Alex Hales, whose raw power has proven effective even in the naturally swinging environment of Trent Bridge. At the age of 22, his time is now.
It's a young man's game, so they say, but not if that man in question is Rahul Dravid. Back in 2007, when India first fell in love with Twenty20 cricket, Dravid was one of a raft of senior players, along with Tendulkar, who did not play in the epoch-changing victory in South Africa. He didn't even play in India's last World Cup victory, the 50-over version in India, but now, with his country in need of a solid batting presence on the most abject of tours, he's finally been given his bow. In the circumstances, it's little surprise he's announced his retirement from the limited-overs game at the end of this tour. But before then, we'll have a chance to see one of the game's smoothest operators get to grips with the rough and tumble of the fastest format.
Team news
With the probable selection of Alex Hales at the top of the order, England are set to field their 19th opening partnership in 38 Twenty20s. The bowling attack is set to have a familiar look to it, with Jade Dernbach's performance in a rain-reduced game against Ireland having cemented his value in the shortest form of the game. Jos Buttler, who once again demonstrated his big-hitting credentials for Somerset on Twenty20 finals day, could find himself squeezed out of the reckoning by fellow newcomer, Ben Stokes.
England: (possible) 1 Craig Kieswetter (wk), 2 Alex Hales, 3 Kevin Pietersen, 4 Eoin Morgan, 5 Ravi Bopara, 6 Ben Stokes/Jos Buttler, 7 Samit Patel, 8 Tim Bresnan, 9 Stuart Broad (capt), 10 Graeme Swann, 11 Jade Dernbach.
Dravid's debut coincides with the end of Gautam Gambhir's tour. He has not been himself since thwacking his head on the Oval turf while dropping Kevin Pietersen in the fourth Test, and has finally bowed out of the tour with concussion. Parthiv Patel, the diminutive keeper who made his name on the 2002 tour of England, is set to open the innings, with a twin spin attack of Amit Mishra and R Ashwin also likely to get an outing.
India: (possible) 1 Parthiv Patel, 2 Rahul Dravid, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Rohit Sharma, 5 Suresh Raina, 6 MS Dhoni (capt/wk), 7 Amit Mishra, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Praveen Kumar, 10 Munaf Patel, 11 R Vinay Kumar.
Pitch and conditions
Old Trafford had a reputation as being one of the quickest decks in world cricket, until the square was rotated as part of the ground's redevelopment. Since then, the pitch conditions have been somewhat subcontinental, although that didn't aid Sri Lanka in their ODI-series-deciding loss earlier in the season. The weather, ever a factor in Manchester, is set fair. Which is nice.
Stats and trivia
England's most recent Twenty20 against India came at Lord's in the 2009 World Twenty20, when Ryan Sidebottom's aggression on a lively pitch helped to defend a middling total of 153 for 7.
The only other Twenty20 between the two teams came in Durban in September 2007, a match made unforgettable by Yuvraj Singh's six sixes in an over off England's current captain, Stuart Broad. Yuvraj finished with 58 from 16 balls, as England were knocked out of the World Twenty20 in the group stages.
Quotes
"The Test series is hard to forget because from an England point of view we played very well and confidence is high. But it's different in the white-ball game, they have a few new players and we have to be aware of that.."
Stuart Broad knows England cannot take their Test dominance for granted
"He went to an eye specialist today and it seems he continues to suffer from concussion."
Shivlal Yadav, India's manager, on the end of Gautam Gambhir's tour
Obama's three big mistakes
Editor's note: David Frum writes a weekly column for CNN.com. A special assistant to President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2002, he is the author of six books, including "Comeback: Conservatism That Can Win Again," and is the editor of FrumForum.
Washington (CNN) -- Over at Bloomberg, Jonathan Alter poses a question to non-supporters of President Obama:
"Tell me again why Barack Obama has been such a bad president? I'm not talking here about him as a tactician and communicator. We can agree that he has played some bad poker with Congress. ... (But) what, specifically, has he done wrong on policy?"
OK, I'll play.
Obama made three crucially bad economic decisions in the first year of his presidency:
1) Obama deferred to Democrats in Congress on the writing of his fiscal stimulus. He fought for a big total, but he paid much less attention to what was included in the total. The predictable result: a stimulus that most economists condemn as very poorly designed.
Congress larded up the stimulus with ancient Democratic wish lists utterly irrelevant to the crisis at hand: $15 billion for more Pell grants, $9 billion for community and rural development, $20 billion for the renewable energy tax credit and so on. $87 billion was used to bail out state governments that had overspent on Medicaid. About $140 billion was put toward individual tax rebates that -- most economists warned -- would do little or nothing to stimulate economic activity.
Should we give Obama a break?
Heller critical of economic performance
Can econ Ph.D. students save the economy?
RELATED TOPICS
Barack Obama
Central Banking
Economic Crisis
Monetary Policy
U.S. Federal Reserve
Only about $100 billion of the stimulus -- one dollar in eight -- went to support new infrastructure projects. When Americans wonder: "Where's our Hoover Dam? Where's our East River Drive?" the answer is directly traced to Obama's abdication of decision-making in 2009.
Obama may have assumed that if his first stimulus failed, he could always go back for a second. But his mission in 2009 was to overwhelm the crisis. Instead, he allowed congressional Democratic spending priorities to overwhelm his economic leadership.
2) Obama failed to mobilize the Federal Reserve to support his fiscal stimulus.
During the financial meltdown of 2008-09, the Fed acted boldly and decisively to save the banking system. Once the banking crisis was contained, however, the Fed's boldness faded. It ended its first round of quantitative easing in spring 2010, for fear of sparking inflation. Yet inflation barely existed as a problem in 2010, while unemployment remained desperate.
When the economy sputtered and stalled in summer 2010, the Fed reacted slowly. Not until almost the end of the year did it try a second -- and much smaller -- round of quantitative easing. QE2 provided a little economic impetus in early 2011, but by summer 2011, the U.S. economy had stalled again.
The Federal Reserve has not delivered anywhere close to the monetary stimulus the U.S. economy needs. Yes, the Fed is independent of the president. But presidents can shape the Fed through their power to name Federal Reserve governors. Obama has failed to get his people on the board. Yes, he's encountered Republican obstruction. I make no excuse for such behavior by some figures in my party. On the other hand, Obama is hardly the first president in history to encounter obstruction. The difference between Obama and his predecessors: When obstructed, Obama usually yields.
3) Obama bet his presidency on the best-case scenario.
By happy coincidence, the best-ever study of the aftermath of financial crises -- Kenneth Rogoff's and Carmen Reinhart's "This Time Is Different" -- was published just in time for 2009.
They warn: Recovery from a crash like 2008 can take years. Yet even armed with this information, Obama did nothing to prepare the public or his administration for the worst. Instead, he allowed his vice president to tout 2010 as "recovery summer."
There was no contingency plan, and by the time Obama at last produces his Plan B when he gives a jobs speech in September, he will face an implacably hostile Congress. That September plan will become his 2012 campaign manifesto -- which means that the unemployed can hope for no action from him until early 2013.
I can anticipate the reaction of Obama defenders like Alter to this indictment: "Obama did all that was politically possible."
To which I can answer: Invoking the limits of the possible may be a sympathetic excuse for failure -- but it does not transform failure into success.
I don't minimize the difficulty of the situation Obama faced in 2009. Maybe no president could have been equal to the crisis. But let's not pretend that the right choices were made in those critical months. They were not, and the country is now suffering the consequences.
Washington (CNN) -- Over at Bloomberg, Jonathan Alter poses a question to non-supporters of President Obama:
"Tell me again why Barack Obama has been such a bad president? I'm not talking here about him as a tactician and communicator. We can agree that he has played some bad poker with Congress. ... (But) what, specifically, has he done wrong on policy?"
OK, I'll play.
Obama made three crucially bad economic decisions in the first year of his presidency:
1) Obama deferred to Democrats in Congress on the writing of his fiscal stimulus. He fought for a big total, but he paid much less attention to what was included in the total. The predictable result: a stimulus that most economists condemn as very poorly designed.
Congress larded up the stimulus with ancient Democratic wish lists utterly irrelevant to the crisis at hand: $15 billion for more Pell grants, $9 billion for community and rural development, $20 billion for the renewable energy tax credit and so on. $87 billion was used to bail out state governments that had overspent on Medicaid. About $140 billion was put toward individual tax rebates that -- most economists warned -- would do little or nothing to stimulate economic activity.
Should we give Obama a break?
Heller critical of economic performance
Can econ Ph.D. students save the economy?
RELATED TOPICS
Barack Obama
Central Banking
Economic Crisis
Monetary Policy
U.S. Federal Reserve
Only about $100 billion of the stimulus -- one dollar in eight -- went to support new infrastructure projects. When Americans wonder: "Where's our Hoover Dam? Where's our East River Drive?" the answer is directly traced to Obama's abdication of decision-making in 2009.
Obama may have assumed that if his first stimulus failed, he could always go back for a second. But his mission in 2009 was to overwhelm the crisis. Instead, he allowed congressional Democratic spending priorities to overwhelm his economic leadership.
2) Obama failed to mobilize the Federal Reserve to support his fiscal stimulus.
During the financial meltdown of 2008-09, the Fed acted boldly and decisively to save the banking system. Once the banking crisis was contained, however, the Fed's boldness faded. It ended its first round of quantitative easing in spring 2010, for fear of sparking inflation. Yet inflation barely existed as a problem in 2010, while unemployment remained desperate.
When the economy sputtered and stalled in summer 2010, the Fed reacted slowly. Not until almost the end of the year did it try a second -- and much smaller -- round of quantitative easing. QE2 provided a little economic impetus in early 2011, but by summer 2011, the U.S. economy had stalled again.
The Federal Reserve has not delivered anywhere close to the monetary stimulus the U.S. economy needs. Yes, the Fed is independent of the president. But presidents can shape the Fed through their power to name Federal Reserve governors. Obama has failed to get his people on the board. Yes, he's encountered Republican obstruction. I make no excuse for such behavior by some figures in my party. On the other hand, Obama is hardly the first president in history to encounter obstruction. The difference between Obama and his predecessors: When obstructed, Obama usually yields.
3) Obama bet his presidency on the best-case scenario.
By happy coincidence, the best-ever study of the aftermath of financial crises -- Kenneth Rogoff's and Carmen Reinhart's "This Time Is Different" -- was published just in time for 2009.
They warn: Recovery from a crash like 2008 can take years. Yet even armed with this information, Obama did nothing to prepare the public or his administration for the worst. Instead, he allowed his vice president to tout 2010 as "recovery summer."
There was no contingency plan, and by the time Obama at last produces his Plan B when he gives a jobs speech in September, he will face an implacably hostile Congress. That September plan will become his 2012 campaign manifesto -- which means that the unemployed can hope for no action from him until early 2013.
I can anticipate the reaction of Obama defenders like Alter to this indictment: "Obama did all that was politically possible."
To which I can answer: Invoking the limits of the possible may be a sympathetic excuse for failure -- but it does not transform failure into success.
I don't minimize the difficulty of the situation Obama faced in 2009. Maybe no president could have been equal to the crisis. But let's not pretend that the right choices were made in those critical months. They were not, and the country is now suffering the consequences.
August deadliest month for U.S. troops in Afghanistan
August has been the deadliest month for U.S. forces in Afghanistan since the conflict began nearly 10 years ago.
Brian R. Bill was among those that died in the August Chinook crash.
Sixty-six American troops have died this month, topping July 2010 when 65 troops died, according to a CNN tally.
Almost half the August troop deaths took place on August 6 when insurgents shot down their helicopter in the eastern central province of Wardak.
Thirty U.S. service members - including 17 Navy SEALs - were killed in that attack, the single largest loss of life for U.S. troops since the Afghan war began in late 2001.
The Taliban claimed militants downed the helicopter with a rocket-propelled grenade.
The surge in U.S. deaths comes as NATO is drawing down and handing over security control to national forces. Some 10,000 U.S. troops are scheduled to depart by year's end, with all U.S. military personnel out of Afghanistan by the end of 2014.
Brian R. Bill was among those that died in the August Chinook crash.
Sixty-six American troops have died this month, topping July 2010 when 65 troops died, according to a CNN tally.
Almost half the August troop deaths took place on August 6 when insurgents shot down their helicopter in the eastern central province of Wardak.
Thirty U.S. service members - including 17 Navy SEALs - were killed in that attack, the single largest loss of life for U.S. troops since the Afghan war began in late 2001.
The Taliban claimed militants downed the helicopter with a rocket-propelled grenade.
The surge in U.S. deaths comes as NATO is drawing down and handing over security control to national forces. Some 10,000 U.S. troops are scheduled to depart by year's end, with all U.S. military personnel out of Afghanistan by the end of 2014.
Sex tax: Street prostitutes in Bonn must now pay meter for a night's work
Editor's Note: The following article comes from Worldcrunch, an innovative, new global news site that translates stories of note in foreign languages into English. This article was originally published in Suddeutsche Zeitung.
BONN – Before going on shift in the limited public space reserved for street prostitution in Bonn, the city‘s prostitutes must now purchase a “sex tax” ticket from an automatic dispenser. The six-euro ticket is valid for one night’s work, no matter the number of clients.
To get the system up and running, fiscal authorities had a machine normally used to dispense tickets for parking places converted so that the words "Steuerticket-Automat" (tax ticket automat) are now painted on it, and the display now reads: "Die Nacht 6,00 Euro" (6 euros a night). The display also states that tickets are required from Monday to Sunday, from 8:15 p.m. to 6 a.m.
In Germany, Bonn is a pioneer of this automatic up-front taxation system. Dortmund has tickets that sex workers buy in gas stations, but no automatic dispenser.
Read: When playing video games at the office is good for business.
The system is meant to make taxing of prostitution more equitable, since those working inside “Eros centers“ and sauna clubs were paying taxes. The sex tax itself was introduced at the beginning of 2011, and is expected to generate some 300,000 euros. City tax controllers are responsible for monitoring the ticket system; anyone caught without a ticket will first receive a warning followed by more severe measures if caught a second time.
Street prostitution in Bonn is limited to a space opposite an “Eros Center.” After a sex worker agrees to go with a drive-by customer, the client drives his car into one of the six “sex boxes” - parking spaces separated by wood partitions - which are equipped with an emergency button to alert the night watchman in case of trouble. The new “meters” are located nearby.
BONN – Before going on shift in the limited public space reserved for street prostitution in Bonn, the city‘s prostitutes must now purchase a “sex tax” ticket from an automatic dispenser. The six-euro ticket is valid for one night’s work, no matter the number of clients.
To get the system up and running, fiscal authorities had a machine normally used to dispense tickets for parking places converted so that the words "Steuerticket-Automat" (tax ticket automat) are now painted on it, and the display now reads: "Die Nacht 6,00 Euro" (6 euros a night). The display also states that tickets are required from Monday to Sunday, from 8:15 p.m. to 6 a.m.
In Germany, Bonn is a pioneer of this automatic up-front taxation system. Dortmund has tickets that sex workers buy in gas stations, but no automatic dispenser.
Read: When playing video games at the office is good for business.
The system is meant to make taxing of prostitution more equitable, since those working inside “Eros centers“ and sauna clubs were paying taxes. The sex tax itself was introduced at the beginning of 2011, and is expected to generate some 300,000 euros. City tax controllers are responsible for monitoring the ticket system; anyone caught without a ticket will first receive a warning followed by more severe measures if caught a second time.
Street prostitution in Bonn is limited to a space opposite an “Eros Center.” After a sex worker agrees to go with a drive-by customer, the client drives his car into one of the six “sex boxes” - parking spaces separated by wood partitions - which are equipped with an emergency button to alert the night watchman in case of trouble. The new “meters” are located nearby.
For Muslim family, faith complicates grief for loved one lost on 9/11
Edmond, Oklahoma (CNN) -- His smiling image has been cut out of a snapshot and carefully added to a photo of his father, so it looks as if the boy is standing beside the man. It smacks of a bad Photoshop job, but it gives the two a shared moment, even though they never met.
The boy's sister, Fahina, created the montage. She is 15 and clings to scant memories and aging photographs. But Farqad, almost 10, has nothing.
She remembers sitting beside their father on amusement park rides, his words -- "Look at my daughter; she's so brave" -- soothing her nerves; she still thinks of him whenever she's on a rollercoaster. She leaned on his legs when he watched basketball on TV and imagined him cheering her on when she played the sport after he was gone. She recalls being driven to see Harvard University, before she even started elementary school, and dreams of attending an Ivy League school to make him proud.
On the morning of September 11, 2001, she woke up extra early on her own. After her father and mother finished saying morning prayers, the young girl took his face in her small hands and enlisted the promise of a Chuck E. Cheese visit. Father and daughter then kissed and said goodbye.
Farqad was born two days later, after terrorists hijacked planes and killed nearly 3,000 -- including 38-year-old Mohammad Salahuddin Chowdhury, who worked atop the North Tower of the World Trade Center.
The Windows on the World banquet server was a degreed physicist in his native Bangladesh and a U.S. citizen who aspired to do so much more in his adopted country. He kept a pager at hand that fateful morning, just in case his wife went into labor.
"I can't imagine not having any memories," said his firstborn, Fahina, unable to hold back her sobs. "Someday, Farqad's going to search online and see everything. I have to help him understand."
This teen's uber-sense of responsibility extends beyond what she believes she owes her brother. As a young woman whose father was killed by men who dared to say they shared her Islamic faith, Fahina feels an obligation to speak up, to be the face of her often-misunderstood religion -- even if she'd prefer not to be known for what she lost and how she lost it.
"For a Muslim person to go through this, it's something no one can understand," she said, the tears still falling. "Extremists used the religion as an excuse to do terrible things. It's so much easier to be mad at people than to get to know them."
Following an unmarked path
Reminders of that terrible day reverberate 1,300 miles from New York, inside a large, modern brick home on a quiet cul-de-sac just north of Oklahoma City.
From framed photographs scattered everywhere, Chowdhury's dark, gentle eyes and thick lashes peer out at the family he left behind. These were the eyes that captured Baraheen Ashrafi when she first met him at their wedding in Bangladesh nearly two decades ago. She wondered whether she was marrying a movie star.
Theirs was an arranged marriage, and what she got in the match was more than a man with good looks. He had lost his parents and cared about hers as if they were his own. He taught her the value of forgiveness, the beauty of Islam and the gifts that come with love. He told her that she was brought to him through prayers.
She laughs when she remembers how clueless she was in the kitchen when she joined him in his beloved New York -- a city she jokingly called "his homeland" -- and how he marveled at her culinary progress. Though he didn't find it funny, she giggles at the memory of putting lipstick on him while he slept and scooping his thick hair up into small ponytails. She smiles when mentioning the staring contests she made him play so he would look deeply into her eyes.
But Ashrafi breaks down when she recalls what he feared.
"He was very afraid of fire, very scared of burning," she said, describing his complaints after mere steam from hot tea once left a mark on his hand. "He was like a baby."
In the weeks after September 11, firefighters promised her that Chowdhury died from smoke inhalation before ever feeling a flame.
If there were a roadmap when it comes to grieving, the journey taken by Ashrafi and her children was unmarked.
She watched Muslim men, afraid to stand out, shave off their beards. Women removed their religious head coverings, known as hijabs. But even as she reeled from grief, Ashrafi somehow found the strength to respond differently.
Though she hadn't worn a hijab in public before, her faith ran deep, thanks to her husband. Two weeks after she lost him, she decided it was time to put on her hijab.
That made her a widow who couldn't count on the kindness of strangers. Her sadness was compounded by hate. Just months after the attacks, boys screamed "jihad!" at Ashrafi and a confused Fahina on a Manhattan street.
While other surviving parents struggled to explain September 11 to their children, Ashrafi faced an additional challenge: Fahina wanted to know why the TV said Muslims killed her daddy.
Chowdhury was one of 32 Muslim victims on September 11, according to the Council on American-Islamic Relations. That distinction has put Ashrafi and her children in the spotlight. Adding to the attention, Ashrafi says, is that Farqad is believed to be the first baby born to a September 11 widow. (CNN could not confirm this, but the boy came into this world the morning of September 13, 2001.)
As the 10-year anniversary of the terrorist attacks approaches, Ashrafi has fielded calls from around the world. A documentary unit from the United Kingdom visited their home. A reporter from Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates sought a sit-down visit. An Australian TV crew is scheduled to fly to Oklahoma this week.
He was in my heart to do good things, and he watches me.
--Farqad Chowdhury, born two days after his father died on 9/11
All of the attention appears to leave Farqad a little numb. He tears himself away from video games, flops down in a plush sitting room chair and rattles off words he can say but doesn't seem to fully feel.
Up until a few years ago, he'd heard only that his father died in an accident. He's still trying to get his head around the truth.
"My dad was in work, and the plane was crashing, and there was a fire there," he said, staring across the room at his mother. "Then my father died. Then I was born. I was born in New York."
Does he know who was behind what happened to his dad?
"A bad guy did it," he said, his eyes still locked on his mother.
"Do you know how many people were with your dad?" she asked.
"Lots," he answered. "Maybe 20?"
Completing his life
Ashrafi was walking back from Fahina's school when American Airlines Flight 11 slammed into the North Tower. She wouldn't get this news until later. But looking back, she realizes that was the moment she felt a surge rush through her belly.
She wasn't yet in labor, but the sensation stopped her. She focused on getting home to rest.
The sex of their second child was a secret she'd kept to herself. She'd known for only a few weeks, but in case the sonogram reading was wrong, she stayed mum.
Her husband had told her that having a son would complete his life. She couldn't wait to see his face when he met their boy.
"He told me he'd be the happiest man in the world," she said, crying. "I was dreaming how his face would be. ... Why did I not tell him?"
She was resting in bed when one of her sisters called to ask Ashrafi where her husband was. "At work," she answered, matter-of-factly. Her sister screamed.
Family and friends soon filled the Queens home. They kept Ashrafi away from the television because the late stages of pregnancy already had pushed her blood pressure too high.
Someone picked up Fahina from school. Just 5 at the time, she remembers seeing all the shoes outside their home's front door and struggling to understand the standing-room-only crowd inside.
Two days later, in the hospital, Ashrafi still expected Chowdhury to walk into the room. She clung to the far-fetched plotlines of romance films. He simply had amnesia and was wandering, lost, she told herself. With time, they'd find each other.
Her sisters surrounded her during a C-section deemed necessary by doctors given the circumstances. When they brought Farqad to her, she looked into the big dark eyes of her husband.
"Daddy wants that, too"
Before he could even speak, Farqad admired himself in mirrors.
"He was such a cute baby, and he knew it, too," Fahina said, flipping through photos.
Their father wasn't so different. Fahina points out pictures of him posing, often alone. For a time, when Farqad saw images of his father holding children, he would scream, "That's me!"
Later, the boy discovered the few pieces of Chowdhury's clothing that his mother had saved. After school, Farqad would change into a dark red T-shirt that dwarfed his small frame. Nowadays, his mother sometimes catches him saying good night to his father's photograph.
"He was in my heart to do good things, and he watches me," the boy said.
"If someone's mean to you? What do you say?" his mother asked. "What does mommy tell you?"
He peers at her and shrugs.
"To be nice to people," she told him.
"I don't want to be nice to mean people," he said.
She smiles. "But that's the way they'll learn to be nice. And Daddy wants that, too."
This was a lesson she says her husband exemplified. She tries to live it herself.
When a man behind her in a Wal-Mart checkout line muttered something about Muslims, she didn't flinch. She felt sorry for the boys who pelted her car with soda cans while screaming "Hey, Muslim!" And she shook off the sting after a woman in a wheelchair, struggling to reach an item on a grocery store shelf, refused Ashrafi's offer of assistance.
"I don't want any help from a Muslim," the woman snapped.
The truth is, she can handle occasional insults in Oklahoma. She couldn't bear them in New York, where everywhere she turned, she was reminded of what was gone.
She and the children moved away in 2002, opting for a simpler, more affordable life near one of her sisters.
Ashrafi says she had to start anew, even if she still cleaves to the past.
Sacrifices and dreams
Ashrafi's focus narrowed after September 11.
"My whole world is this house and my kids," she says. "God chose me to be given these two kids and for me to raise them on my own. ... I want to enjoy every moment with them."
She has no plans to return to her job in a bank. She rarely socializes beyond her family. At 39, she vows to die Chowdhury's wife.
So when people, including family members, tell her they're praying she'll meet someone, she shoots back, "Please don't pray that for me; that would be a curse!"
She lost her own father in 1997. Her mother, who moved in with Ashrafi and her kids for five years after September 11, often tells Ashrafi to do something for herself. Her response is to say that when Farqad goes to college, maybe she will go to school, too.
Her husband always told her she should be an interior designer. Her home is full of floral arrangements she created, unique decorative pieces she seized on sale and furnishings fit for a showroom.
Chowdhury planned to complete a degree in computer information systems. But with another child on the way, he hadn't yet walked away from the good money he was making at Windows on the World.
I still feel blessed. I'm just trying to make my dad proud.
--Fahina Chowdhury, who was 5 when her father died in the terror attacks
He envisioned great success for his offspring, and Ashrafi does, too. She boasts about their grades, has hired a tutor to help Farqad with his homework -- so she and Fahina don't have to be "the bad guys" -- and encourages her children to aim high.
Fahina, who wants to be a doctor, says she doesn't need to be prodded.
She sees her mother's sacrifices and knows her father worked as a waiter for them and not because that was his dream.
"I know if he was here, he'd be pushing me. So I try to push myself," she said. Even with all her family has endured, "I still feel blessed. I'm just trying to make my dad proud."
Honoring without ceremony
On September 11, Ashrafi and her kids will not join other victims' families in New York. They aren't drawn to large public ceremonies. They remember the anniversary every day, they say, and would rather continue doing so privately.
Fahina says she prays extra hard for her father on these anniversaries.
She is a young woman with faith beyond her years. Before she was 5, she swore off McDonald's. While other kids clamored for Happy Meals, she insisted on eating only meats certified as halal, acceptable according to Islamic law. By the time she was 9, she wanted to fast during Ramadan. She began praying at 11 and brings her prayer mat with her when she stays with friends.
Ashrafi takes great pride in the diversity that surrounds her children and in their open-mindedness. She loves that one of Fahina's best friends is Jewish, that she's grown up attending sleepovers with girls of all religious backgrounds and that her high school honors Fahina's upbringing, too.
When a fringe Florida pastor first threatened to burn the Quran during last year's September 11 anniversary, Fahina came to school to find classmates wearing green to honor Islam. On a student's Converse sneakers, she spotted the scrawled words "I love the Quran."
On September 11, Ashrafi says, prayers will be said for her husband in his brother's home in Bangladesh, as they are every year on this date. And just as she's done on each anniversary, Ashrafi will send money to Bangladesh to uphold a family tradition of honoring the dead by bringing food to orphanages. Chowdhury's brother will make the delivery.
Ashrafi does not attend a mosque. She says she finds all she needs in the confines of her home and in her Quran. But every Saturday, she sends her children to a small mosque to learn about the Quran and Islamic history.
Fahina feels a strong commitment to her religious education. She says she needs answers for the questions about her faith that she suspects she will face for a lifetime.
"Who knew it would never be filled"
Farqad is splayed across a sofa, fighting ninjas on his handheld gaming system. His mother and sister leaf through an old pink scrapbook, the one Ashrafi started when she began her life with Chowdhury.
The first pages, slightly yellowed, are a celebration of their wedding. Floral stickers frame a large picture taken during the ceremony.
She was so young, just shy of 20, when she met him that day.
She flips ahead to a page marking six months after their marriage, when she joined him in New York. A snapshot captures their first date in the big city. Her husband, who loved cars, took her to an auto show.
"How romantic!" Fahina said with a laugh, rolling her dark eyes.
Other pages mark their first anniversary. Ashrafi poses with her newborn daughter, and Chowdhury proudly holds his little girl.
Ashrafi turns toward the back of the book. The pages are blank. This is where she would have illustrated their "happily ever after," she says, the days when she and her husband would have celebrated the completion of their family with their newborn son.
"Who knew it would never be filled," she said quietly.
Hearing her words, Fahina cries again -- for what her mother lost, what she lost and what her brother never knew.
The boy's sister, Fahina, created the montage. She is 15 and clings to scant memories and aging photographs. But Farqad, almost 10, has nothing.
She remembers sitting beside their father on amusement park rides, his words -- "Look at my daughter; she's so brave" -- soothing her nerves; she still thinks of him whenever she's on a rollercoaster. She leaned on his legs when he watched basketball on TV and imagined him cheering her on when she played the sport after he was gone. She recalls being driven to see Harvard University, before she even started elementary school, and dreams of attending an Ivy League school to make him proud.
On the morning of September 11, 2001, she woke up extra early on her own. After her father and mother finished saying morning prayers, the young girl took his face in her small hands and enlisted the promise of a Chuck E. Cheese visit. Father and daughter then kissed and said goodbye.
Farqad was born two days later, after terrorists hijacked planes and killed nearly 3,000 -- including 38-year-old Mohammad Salahuddin Chowdhury, who worked atop the North Tower of the World Trade Center.
The Windows on the World banquet server was a degreed physicist in his native Bangladesh and a U.S. citizen who aspired to do so much more in his adopted country. He kept a pager at hand that fateful morning, just in case his wife went into labor.
"I can't imagine not having any memories," said his firstborn, Fahina, unable to hold back her sobs. "Someday, Farqad's going to search online and see everything. I have to help him understand."
This teen's uber-sense of responsibility extends beyond what she believes she owes her brother. As a young woman whose father was killed by men who dared to say they shared her Islamic faith, Fahina feels an obligation to speak up, to be the face of her often-misunderstood religion -- even if she'd prefer not to be known for what she lost and how she lost it.
"For a Muslim person to go through this, it's something no one can understand," she said, the tears still falling. "Extremists used the religion as an excuse to do terrible things. It's so much easier to be mad at people than to get to know them."
Following an unmarked path
Reminders of that terrible day reverberate 1,300 miles from New York, inside a large, modern brick home on a quiet cul-de-sac just north of Oklahoma City.
From framed photographs scattered everywhere, Chowdhury's dark, gentle eyes and thick lashes peer out at the family he left behind. These were the eyes that captured Baraheen Ashrafi when she first met him at their wedding in Bangladesh nearly two decades ago. She wondered whether she was marrying a movie star.
Theirs was an arranged marriage, and what she got in the match was more than a man with good looks. He had lost his parents and cared about hers as if they were his own. He taught her the value of forgiveness, the beauty of Islam and the gifts that come with love. He told her that she was brought to him through prayers.
She laughs when she remembers how clueless she was in the kitchen when she joined him in his beloved New York -- a city she jokingly called "his homeland" -- and how he marveled at her culinary progress. Though he didn't find it funny, she giggles at the memory of putting lipstick on him while he slept and scooping his thick hair up into small ponytails. She smiles when mentioning the staring contests she made him play so he would look deeply into her eyes.
But Ashrafi breaks down when she recalls what he feared.
"He was very afraid of fire, very scared of burning," she said, describing his complaints after mere steam from hot tea once left a mark on his hand. "He was like a baby."
In the weeks after September 11, firefighters promised her that Chowdhury died from smoke inhalation before ever feeling a flame.
If there were a roadmap when it comes to grieving, the journey taken by Ashrafi and her children was unmarked.
She watched Muslim men, afraid to stand out, shave off their beards. Women removed their religious head coverings, known as hijabs. But even as she reeled from grief, Ashrafi somehow found the strength to respond differently.
Though she hadn't worn a hijab in public before, her faith ran deep, thanks to her husband. Two weeks after she lost him, she decided it was time to put on her hijab.
That made her a widow who couldn't count on the kindness of strangers. Her sadness was compounded by hate. Just months after the attacks, boys screamed "jihad!" at Ashrafi and a confused Fahina on a Manhattan street.
While other surviving parents struggled to explain September 11 to their children, Ashrafi faced an additional challenge: Fahina wanted to know why the TV said Muslims killed her daddy.
Chowdhury was one of 32 Muslim victims on September 11, according to the Council on American-Islamic Relations. That distinction has put Ashrafi and her children in the spotlight. Adding to the attention, Ashrafi says, is that Farqad is believed to be the first baby born to a September 11 widow. (CNN could not confirm this, but the boy came into this world the morning of September 13, 2001.)
As the 10-year anniversary of the terrorist attacks approaches, Ashrafi has fielded calls from around the world. A documentary unit from the United Kingdom visited their home. A reporter from Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates sought a sit-down visit. An Australian TV crew is scheduled to fly to Oklahoma this week.
He was in my heart to do good things, and he watches me.
--Farqad Chowdhury, born two days after his father died on 9/11
All of the attention appears to leave Farqad a little numb. He tears himself away from video games, flops down in a plush sitting room chair and rattles off words he can say but doesn't seem to fully feel.
Up until a few years ago, he'd heard only that his father died in an accident. He's still trying to get his head around the truth.
"My dad was in work, and the plane was crashing, and there was a fire there," he said, staring across the room at his mother. "Then my father died. Then I was born. I was born in New York."
Does he know who was behind what happened to his dad?
"A bad guy did it," he said, his eyes still locked on his mother.
"Do you know how many people were with your dad?" she asked.
"Lots," he answered. "Maybe 20?"
Completing his life
Ashrafi was walking back from Fahina's school when American Airlines Flight 11 slammed into the North Tower. She wouldn't get this news until later. But looking back, she realizes that was the moment she felt a surge rush through her belly.
She wasn't yet in labor, but the sensation stopped her. She focused on getting home to rest.
The sex of their second child was a secret she'd kept to herself. She'd known for only a few weeks, but in case the sonogram reading was wrong, she stayed mum.
Her husband had told her that having a son would complete his life. She couldn't wait to see his face when he met their boy.
"He told me he'd be the happiest man in the world," she said, crying. "I was dreaming how his face would be. ... Why did I not tell him?"
She was resting in bed when one of her sisters called to ask Ashrafi where her husband was. "At work," she answered, matter-of-factly. Her sister screamed.
Family and friends soon filled the Queens home. They kept Ashrafi away from the television because the late stages of pregnancy already had pushed her blood pressure too high.
Someone picked up Fahina from school. Just 5 at the time, she remembers seeing all the shoes outside their home's front door and struggling to understand the standing-room-only crowd inside.
Two days later, in the hospital, Ashrafi still expected Chowdhury to walk into the room. She clung to the far-fetched plotlines of romance films. He simply had amnesia and was wandering, lost, she told herself. With time, they'd find each other.
Her sisters surrounded her during a C-section deemed necessary by doctors given the circumstances. When they brought Farqad to her, she looked into the big dark eyes of her husband.
"Daddy wants that, too"
Before he could even speak, Farqad admired himself in mirrors.
"He was such a cute baby, and he knew it, too," Fahina said, flipping through photos.
Their father wasn't so different. Fahina points out pictures of him posing, often alone. For a time, when Farqad saw images of his father holding children, he would scream, "That's me!"
Later, the boy discovered the few pieces of Chowdhury's clothing that his mother had saved. After school, Farqad would change into a dark red T-shirt that dwarfed his small frame. Nowadays, his mother sometimes catches him saying good night to his father's photograph.
"He was in my heart to do good things, and he watches me," the boy said.
"If someone's mean to you? What do you say?" his mother asked. "What does mommy tell you?"
He peers at her and shrugs.
"To be nice to people," she told him.
"I don't want to be nice to mean people," he said.
She smiles. "But that's the way they'll learn to be nice. And Daddy wants that, too."
This was a lesson she says her husband exemplified. She tries to live it herself.
When a man behind her in a Wal-Mart checkout line muttered something about Muslims, she didn't flinch. She felt sorry for the boys who pelted her car with soda cans while screaming "Hey, Muslim!" And she shook off the sting after a woman in a wheelchair, struggling to reach an item on a grocery store shelf, refused Ashrafi's offer of assistance.
"I don't want any help from a Muslim," the woman snapped.
The truth is, she can handle occasional insults in Oklahoma. She couldn't bear them in New York, where everywhere she turned, she was reminded of what was gone.
She and the children moved away in 2002, opting for a simpler, more affordable life near one of her sisters.
Ashrafi says she had to start anew, even if she still cleaves to the past.
Sacrifices and dreams
Ashrafi's focus narrowed after September 11.
"My whole world is this house and my kids," she says. "God chose me to be given these two kids and for me to raise them on my own. ... I want to enjoy every moment with them."
She has no plans to return to her job in a bank. She rarely socializes beyond her family. At 39, she vows to die Chowdhury's wife.
So when people, including family members, tell her they're praying she'll meet someone, she shoots back, "Please don't pray that for me; that would be a curse!"
She lost her own father in 1997. Her mother, who moved in with Ashrafi and her kids for five years after September 11, often tells Ashrafi to do something for herself. Her response is to say that when Farqad goes to college, maybe she will go to school, too.
Her husband always told her she should be an interior designer. Her home is full of floral arrangements she created, unique decorative pieces she seized on sale and furnishings fit for a showroom.
Chowdhury planned to complete a degree in computer information systems. But with another child on the way, he hadn't yet walked away from the good money he was making at Windows on the World.
I still feel blessed. I'm just trying to make my dad proud.
--Fahina Chowdhury, who was 5 when her father died in the terror attacks
He envisioned great success for his offspring, and Ashrafi does, too. She boasts about their grades, has hired a tutor to help Farqad with his homework -- so she and Fahina don't have to be "the bad guys" -- and encourages her children to aim high.
Fahina, who wants to be a doctor, says she doesn't need to be prodded.
She sees her mother's sacrifices and knows her father worked as a waiter for them and not because that was his dream.
"I know if he was here, he'd be pushing me. So I try to push myself," she said. Even with all her family has endured, "I still feel blessed. I'm just trying to make my dad proud."
Honoring without ceremony
On September 11, Ashrafi and her kids will not join other victims' families in New York. They aren't drawn to large public ceremonies. They remember the anniversary every day, they say, and would rather continue doing so privately.
Fahina says she prays extra hard for her father on these anniversaries.
She is a young woman with faith beyond her years. Before she was 5, she swore off McDonald's. While other kids clamored for Happy Meals, she insisted on eating only meats certified as halal, acceptable according to Islamic law. By the time she was 9, she wanted to fast during Ramadan. She began praying at 11 and brings her prayer mat with her when she stays with friends.
Ashrafi takes great pride in the diversity that surrounds her children and in their open-mindedness. She loves that one of Fahina's best friends is Jewish, that she's grown up attending sleepovers with girls of all religious backgrounds and that her high school honors Fahina's upbringing, too.
When a fringe Florida pastor first threatened to burn the Quran during last year's September 11 anniversary, Fahina came to school to find classmates wearing green to honor Islam. On a student's Converse sneakers, she spotted the scrawled words "I love the Quran."
On September 11, Ashrafi says, prayers will be said for her husband in his brother's home in Bangladesh, as they are every year on this date. And just as she's done on each anniversary, Ashrafi will send money to Bangladesh to uphold a family tradition of honoring the dead by bringing food to orphanages. Chowdhury's brother will make the delivery.
Ashrafi does not attend a mosque. She says she finds all she needs in the confines of her home and in her Quran. But every Saturday, she sends her children to a small mosque to learn about the Quran and Islamic history.
Fahina feels a strong commitment to her religious education. She says she needs answers for the questions about her faith that she suspects she will face for a lifetime.
"Who knew it would never be filled"
Farqad is splayed across a sofa, fighting ninjas on his handheld gaming system. His mother and sister leaf through an old pink scrapbook, the one Ashrafi started when she began her life with Chowdhury.
The first pages, slightly yellowed, are a celebration of their wedding. Floral stickers frame a large picture taken during the ceremony.
She was so young, just shy of 20, when she met him that day.
She flips ahead to a page marking six months after their marriage, when she joined him in New York. A snapshot captures their first date in the big city. Her husband, who loved cars, took her to an auto show.
"How romantic!" Fahina said with a laugh, rolling her dark eyes.
Other pages mark their first anniversary. Ashrafi poses with her newborn daughter, and Chowdhury proudly holds his little girl.
Ashrafi turns toward the back of the book. The pages are blank. This is where she would have illustrated their "happily ever after," she says, the days when she and her husband would have celebrated the completion of their family with their newborn son.
"Who knew it would never be filled," she said quietly.
Hearing her words, Fahina cries again -- for what her mother lost, what she lost and what her brother never knew.
The Buddha wasn’t a Buddhist!
The Buddha wasn’t a mere Buddhist; he was universal and his principles are the pillars of all religions.
And, media makes our mind and mind makes culture. And culture makes a man. And in turn, man makes the media, and then the cycle goes on and on.
These were some of the key points of discussion on the role of the media in Indian culture and Buddhism and how they influence each other. Organised by the Central Institute of Buddhist Studies (CIBS), Leh, to celebrate the 2600th year of the Buddha’s enlightenment, scholars said if India was seen today as a liberal and multiracial and multicultural society with dozens of castes and creed, existing harmoniously and homogeneously, Buddhism gets a fair share of the credit.
Ven. Wangchok Dorjee Negi, Principal, CIBS, pointed out that Buddhism today had enabled the stressed minds all over the globe to have an alternate way of life because of its unique qualities like adaptability, scientific nature and its stress on tolerance. That Buddhism is a highly adaptable way of life and not an orthodox religion has made it one of the factors in maintaining peace all over the world.
Scholars said the Buddhist way of life was one of simplicity, generosity, contentment and liberality. And, therefore, these factors enable man to face life in a manner that the difficulties and sufferings that cripple life are made less hitting. Buddhism makes one see the difficulties of others and hence one may become a “giver” and a “helper” so that your own sufferings are lessened by sharing with those of others. By being generous and loving, one does not lose anything but gets rewards in multifold.
Buddhism, as Nehru had said, “Even as it ceased to be counted as a separate kind of religion except in some pockets of the world, remained ingrained in the culture and minds of the people and thereby as a national way of life in India.”
This sentiment was shared by Gandhi too who had said that Buddhism influenced the Indian life in a hundred ways. Even if you are not a Buddhist, your good ways of life and virtues are a reflection of the Eightfold Path and the Four Noble Truths of the Buddha. Thus, Buddhism has been able to enrich the very living habits of mankind today by ousting the orthodox and the destructive mindsets of the people.
And, media makes our mind and mind makes culture. And culture makes a man. And in turn, man makes the media, and then the cycle goes on and on.
These were some of the key points of discussion on the role of the media in Indian culture and Buddhism and how they influence each other. Organised by the Central Institute of Buddhist Studies (CIBS), Leh, to celebrate the 2600th year of the Buddha’s enlightenment, scholars said if India was seen today as a liberal and multiracial and multicultural society with dozens of castes and creed, existing harmoniously and homogeneously, Buddhism gets a fair share of the credit.
Ven. Wangchok Dorjee Negi, Principal, CIBS, pointed out that Buddhism today had enabled the stressed minds all over the globe to have an alternate way of life because of its unique qualities like adaptability, scientific nature and its stress on tolerance. That Buddhism is a highly adaptable way of life and not an orthodox religion has made it one of the factors in maintaining peace all over the world.
Scholars said the Buddhist way of life was one of simplicity, generosity, contentment and liberality. And, therefore, these factors enable man to face life in a manner that the difficulties and sufferings that cripple life are made less hitting. Buddhism makes one see the difficulties of others and hence one may become a “giver” and a “helper” so that your own sufferings are lessened by sharing with those of others. By being generous and loving, one does not lose anything but gets rewards in multifold.
Buddhism, as Nehru had said, “Even as it ceased to be counted as a separate kind of religion except in some pockets of the world, remained ingrained in the culture and minds of the people and thereby as a national way of life in India.”
This sentiment was shared by Gandhi too who had said that Buddhism influenced the Indian life in a hundred ways. Even if you are not a Buddhist, your good ways of life and virtues are a reflection of the Eightfold Path and the Four Noble Truths of the Buddha. Thus, Buddhism has been able to enrich the very living habits of mankind today by ousting the orthodox and the destructive mindsets of the people.
More headaches for US with new WikiLeaks releases
The accelerated online disclosure of tens of thousands of previously unreleased State Department cables by the WikiLeaks organization is raising new concerns about the exposure of confidential US embassy
sources. It is also proving a source of fresh diplomatic setbacks and embarrassment
for the Obama
administration.
Current and former American officials said Tuesday that the disclosure in the past week of more than 125,000 sensitive documents by WikiLeaks, far more than it had earlier published, further endangered informants and jeopardized US foreign policy goals.
The officials would not comment on specific information contained in the leaked documents but said the rate of the new releases, including about 50,000 in one day alone, had sparked fears that the cables may not be scrubbed to protect the identities of individuals named in them.
sources. It is also proving a source of fresh diplomatic setbacks and embarrassment
for the Obama
administration.
Current and former American officials said Tuesday that the disclosure in the past week of more than 125,000 sensitive documents by WikiLeaks, far more than it had earlier published, further endangered informants and jeopardized US foreign policy goals.
The officials would not comment on specific information contained in the leaked documents but said the rate of the new releases, including about 50,000 in one day alone, had sparked fears that the cables may not be scrubbed to protect the identities of individuals named in them.
SRK to hold Eid party
Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan is not known to throw Eid parties but this year the actor is planning to have a bash on the day that falls Tuesday.
"I want to have a big Eid party this time because I want to read namaaz with my kids this time. We will call few friends.
I've never celebrated
Eid
in a big way, but this time I feel like celebrating it.
"My children are old enough now and I want them to learn about my religion in the best way possible," Shah Rukh told reporters here.
The 45-year-old actor has two children, son Aryan, born in 1997 and daughter Suhana, born in 2000.
"I want to have a big Eid party this time because I want to read namaaz with my kids this time. We will call few friends.
I've never celebrated
Eid
in a big way, but this time I feel like celebrating it.
"My children are old enough now and I want them to learn about my religion in the best way possible," Shah Rukh told reporters here.
The 45-year-old actor has two children, son Aryan, born in 1997 and daughter Suhana, born in 2000.
Celina Jaitly is married!
The latest Bollywood beauty to join the marriage bandwagon is none other than Celina Jaitly. The actor married her hotelier boyfriend Peter Haag in a quiet ceremony in a 1000-year old monastery in Austria. She posted pictures of her new husband, father and brother-in-
law on
Twitter.
And officially announced the marriage by tweeting, "Beloved tweeple. ..With great pleasure I would like to announce my wedding with @peterhaag n the 23rd of last month at a thousand year old monastery in Austria. We seek your blessings and good wishes, and apologize for the delayed announcement due to a family tragedy ..."
Peter Haag is a hotelier based in Dubai. He describes himself on twitter as, "Hotelier. Marketeer. Brand Strategist. Passion for Luxury, Hotels, Fashion, Photography, Design, Innovation and Nature. Apple-fanatic."
The couple has been together for one-and-a-half-years.
They were engaged in a small ceremony in Mumbai earlier this year. At that time, Celina, tourism ambassador of Egypt, had insisted that they would only tie the knot in Egypt.
"I'm sure everything will be back to normal in Egypt by September. Peter and I will take our marriage vows in Egypt and nowhere else. We had decided that when we decided to get married. That won't change."
She insisted that she was in constant touch with Egyptian authorities to ascertain a date for the wedding.
Wonder what changed their plans. Anyway, we wish the newlyweds a happy married life!
law on
Twitter.
And officially announced the marriage by tweeting, "Beloved tweeple. ..With great pleasure I would like to announce my wedding with @peterhaag n the 23rd of last month at a thousand year old monastery in Austria. We seek your blessings and good wishes, and apologize for the delayed announcement due to a family tragedy ..."
Peter Haag is a hotelier based in Dubai. He describes himself on twitter as, "Hotelier. Marketeer. Brand Strategist. Passion for Luxury, Hotels, Fashion, Photography, Design, Innovation and Nature. Apple-fanatic."
The couple has been together for one-and-a-half-years.
They were engaged in a small ceremony in Mumbai earlier this year. At that time, Celina, tourism ambassador of Egypt, had insisted that they would only tie the knot in Egypt.
"I'm sure everything will be back to normal in Egypt by September. Peter and I will take our marriage vows in Egypt and nowhere else. We had decided that when we decided to get married. That won't change."
She insisted that she was in constant touch with Egyptian authorities to ascertain a date for the wedding.
Wonder what changed their plans. Anyway, we wish the newlyweds a happy married life!
Mumbai, New Delhi among 5 cheapest places in world: Survey
NEW DELHI: Government may be finding it difficult to battle soaring inflation in the country, but a global survey has found two key Indian cities, Mumbai and New Delhi, to be amongst the five cheapest places to live.
In a Worldwide Cost of Living Survey, India's financial capital Mumbai has been ranked third cheapest place to live, while national capital New Delhi is fifth.
The annual survey, conducted by international research firm Economist Intelligence Unit, claims to rank as many as 134 major places across the world on the basis of costs of various items ranging from food to transport to toiletries.
In this year's ranking of costliest cities of the world, Mumbai has been placed at 131st position, up a place from 132nd a year ago, while New Delhi has remained at 129th.
The only two places found to be cheaper than Mumbai are Tunis in Tunisia and Karachi in Pakistan. Tehran in Iran has been ranked as cheaper than New Delhi at 130th position.
Japan's Tokyo has been ranked as the costliest place in the world, followed by Oslo ( Norway), Japan's Osaka Kobe, Paris (France) and Zurich ( Switzerland) in the top five.
Others in the top-ten include Sydney, Melbourne, Frankfurt, Geneva and Singapore.
The Indian cities' ranking among five cheapest has come as a surprise, as soaring prices have been a matter of grave concern for common man as also policymakers in the country.
Only yesterday, the finance minister Pranab Mukherjee said there was inflationary pressure in the economy, although inflation in the food segment has declined marginally.
He also said that the overall inflation figure for the month of June could see some upward movement, from 9.06% recorded in May.
The 10 cheapest cities in the world have a strong presence in the Indian subcontinent and the Middle East and North Africa.
"Despite the rise of India as a growing emerging-market economy, the low cost of living in cities continues to reflect the fact that the subcontinent remains a comparatively cheap place to live and work," the survey said.
Karachi in Pakistan is the cheapest location surveyed, with a cost of living level at less than one-half of that of New York and one-third of that of Tokyo, the report said.
Karachi is joined in the bottom ten by Dhaka ( Bangladesh) and the Indian cities of Mumbai and New Delhi.
Cities in the Middle East and North Africa make up most of the rest of the cheapest locations.
Algiers (Algeria), Tehran (Iran) Tunis (Tunisia) and Jeddah ( Saudi Arabia) all feature in the bottom 10.
"The low cost of living in these locations is driven by a mix of weakened currencies, low levels of development and, in some cases, price controls and subsidies on staple goods," the survey said.
The two remaining cheapest cities in the world include Manila ( Philippines) and Panama City (Panama).
Colombo ( Sri Lanka), is the only other city surveyed on the Indian subcontinent, that is one of the 20 cheapest cities and was ranked at the 114th place in the survey.
In a Worldwide Cost of Living Survey, India's financial capital Mumbai has been ranked third cheapest place to live, while national capital New Delhi is fifth.
The annual survey, conducted by international research firm Economist Intelligence Unit, claims to rank as many as 134 major places across the world on the basis of costs of various items ranging from food to transport to toiletries.
In this year's ranking of costliest cities of the world, Mumbai has been placed at 131st position, up a place from 132nd a year ago, while New Delhi has remained at 129th.
The only two places found to be cheaper than Mumbai are Tunis in Tunisia and Karachi in Pakistan. Tehran in Iran has been ranked as cheaper than New Delhi at 130th position.
Japan's Tokyo has been ranked as the costliest place in the world, followed by Oslo ( Norway), Japan's Osaka Kobe, Paris (France) and Zurich ( Switzerland) in the top five.
Others in the top-ten include Sydney, Melbourne, Frankfurt, Geneva and Singapore.
The Indian cities' ranking among five cheapest has come as a surprise, as soaring prices have been a matter of grave concern for common man as also policymakers in the country.
Only yesterday, the finance minister Pranab Mukherjee said there was inflationary pressure in the economy, although inflation in the food segment has declined marginally.
He also said that the overall inflation figure for the month of June could see some upward movement, from 9.06% recorded in May.
The 10 cheapest cities in the world have a strong presence in the Indian subcontinent and the Middle East and North Africa.
"Despite the rise of India as a growing emerging-market economy, the low cost of living in cities continues to reflect the fact that the subcontinent remains a comparatively cheap place to live and work," the survey said.
Karachi in Pakistan is the cheapest location surveyed, with a cost of living level at less than one-half of that of New York and one-third of that of Tokyo, the report said.
Karachi is joined in the bottom ten by Dhaka ( Bangladesh) and the Indian cities of Mumbai and New Delhi.
Cities in the Middle East and North Africa make up most of the rest of the cheapest locations.
Algiers (Algeria), Tehran (Iran) Tunis (Tunisia) and Jeddah ( Saudi Arabia) all feature in the bottom 10.
"The low cost of living in these locations is driven by a mix of weakened currencies, low levels of development and, in some cases, price controls and subsidies on staple goods," the survey said.
The two remaining cheapest cities in the world include Manila ( Philippines) and Panama City (Panama).
Colombo ( Sri Lanka), is the only other city surveyed on the Indian subcontinent, that is one of the 20 cheapest cities and was ranked at the 114th place in the survey.
Melbourne world's best city to live, Mumbai among worst: Survey
MELBOURNE: Australian city Melbourne has been named as the world's most liveable city, while India's business capital Mumbai placed at 116th position in an annual survey that assessed living conditions in 140 global cities.
According to the Economic Intelligence Unit's new Global Liveability Survey, Melbourne dislodged Vancouver to become the best city in the world to live.
The Canadian capital city that topped the survey since 2002, fell this year to third place behind Vienna, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.
According to the report, India's commercial hub Mumbai is ranked 116th, one place up from its previous year's ranking.
In 2010, Mumbai was ranked 117th while Delhi was at 113th position. Though Delhi figured in the new survey, its current ranking was not mentioned in the media report.
Other Australian cities in the top 10 included Sydney, which is placed at 6th, while Perth and Adelaide ranked eighth and ninth.
"Australia, with a low population density and relatively low crime rates, continues to supply some of the world's most liveable cities," survey editor Jon Copestake said.
The top 10 liveable cities included Toronto, which is placed at 4th, followed by Calgary (5th), Helsinki (7th) and Auckland (10th). London was ranked 53, while at 26 position, Honolulu was the top US city.
The worst places to live among the 140 locations surveyed by EIU were Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea, Bangladesh's Dhaka and Zimbabwe's Harare.
Scores in Europe had been pushed slightly down by the eurozone crisis, while the Arab Spring had affected ratings across the Middle East and North Africa.
The cities were gauged on five categories -- political and social stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education and infrastructure.
They were scored out of 100 and the report noted that the top 10 cities were only separated by 1.8 percentage points.
According to the Economic Intelligence Unit's new Global Liveability Survey, Melbourne dislodged Vancouver to become the best city in the world to live.
The Canadian capital city that topped the survey since 2002, fell this year to third place behind Vienna, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.
According to the report, India's commercial hub Mumbai is ranked 116th, one place up from its previous year's ranking.
In 2010, Mumbai was ranked 117th while Delhi was at 113th position. Though Delhi figured in the new survey, its current ranking was not mentioned in the media report.
Other Australian cities in the top 10 included Sydney, which is placed at 6th, while Perth and Adelaide ranked eighth and ninth.
"Australia, with a low population density and relatively low crime rates, continues to supply some of the world's most liveable cities," survey editor Jon Copestake said.
The top 10 liveable cities included Toronto, which is placed at 4th, followed by Calgary (5th), Helsinki (7th) and Auckland (10th). London was ranked 53, while at 26 position, Honolulu was the top US city.
The worst places to live among the 140 locations surveyed by EIU were Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea, Bangladesh's Dhaka and Zimbabwe's Harare.
Scores in Europe had been pushed slightly down by the eurozone crisis, while the Arab Spring had affected ratings across the Middle East and North Africa.
The cities were gauged on five categories -- political and social stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education and infrastructure.
They were scored out of 100 and the report noted that the top 10 cities were only separated by 1.8 percentage points.
$7m Hindu temple planned in Florida
A $7 million Hindu temple called Manav Mandir has reportedly been planned for Suntree in Florida (USA).
This upcoming marble floored temple on 36 acres will be completed in about 18 months, and will include 17 decorated images of Hindu deities, including Lord Vishnu and Lord Ganesh, carved out of marble in Jaipur (India), organizers claim.
Meanwhile, distinguished Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, applauded efforts of temple management and area community for realizing this wonderful Hindu temple complex.
Rajan Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, further said that it was important to pass on Hindu spirituality, concepts and traditions to coming generations amidst so many distractions in the consumerist society and hoped that this new temple would help in this direction. Zed stressed that instead of running after materialism; we should focus on inner search and realization of Self and work towards achieving moksh (liberation), which was the goal of Hinduism.
Manav Mandir will be the second Hindu temple in Brevard County, the other is in Melbourne, and besides worship needs of the community, it also plans to fulfill its educational needs. It will organize festivals, undertake the study/discussion of sacred texts, offer yoga and other classes, etc., and temple kitchen will serve prasad . It will provide venue for elaborate weddings also, reports suggest.
The second phase of this temple is said to include a separate 35,000 square foot fellowship hall with dance floor, state-of-the-art audio-visual equipment and chandeliers. Principal organizers reportedly include Nina Gadodia, Umesh Singh and Mike Shah.
Suntree is the largest master planned unincorporated community in Brevard County. Notable people associated with it include baseball players Tim Wakefield, Cecil Fielder and Prince Fielder; and wrestler Devon Hughes. Brevard County, also known as Space Coast, houses John F. Kennedy Space Center. Robin Fisher is the Chairman of County Commissioners, while Howard Tipton is County Manager.
This upcoming marble floored temple on 36 acres will be completed in about 18 months, and will include 17 decorated images of Hindu deities, including Lord Vishnu and Lord Ganesh, carved out of marble in Jaipur (India), organizers claim.
Meanwhile, distinguished Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, applauded efforts of temple management and area community for realizing this wonderful Hindu temple complex.
Rajan Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, further said that it was important to pass on Hindu spirituality, concepts and traditions to coming generations amidst so many distractions in the consumerist society and hoped that this new temple would help in this direction. Zed stressed that instead of running after materialism; we should focus on inner search and realization of Self and work towards achieving moksh (liberation), which was the goal of Hinduism.
Manav Mandir will be the second Hindu temple in Brevard County, the other is in Melbourne, and besides worship needs of the community, it also plans to fulfill its educational needs. It will organize festivals, undertake the study/discussion of sacred texts, offer yoga and other classes, etc., and temple kitchen will serve prasad . It will provide venue for elaborate weddings also, reports suggest.
The second phase of this temple is said to include a separate 35,000 square foot fellowship hall with dance floor, state-of-the-art audio-visual equipment and chandeliers. Principal organizers reportedly include Nina Gadodia, Umesh Singh and Mike Shah.
Suntree is the largest master planned unincorporated community in Brevard County. Notable people associated with it include baseball players Tim Wakefield, Cecil Fielder and Prince Fielder; and wrestler Devon Hughes. Brevard County, also known as Space Coast, houses John F. Kennedy Space Center. Robin Fisher is the Chairman of County Commissioners, while Howard Tipton is County Manager.
Nice girls and bad boys!
Nice is dull, while the excitement and adventure that ‘bad’ brings with it can prove irresistible!
Flicking through channels, I chanced upon the umpteenth rerun of the movie, Murder. The scene I stumbled upon was Ashmit Patel faced with the evidence of his wife’s infidelity. The obviously embarrassed detective who has just presented him with pictures of his wife (played by Mallika Sherawat) and her paramour (Emran Hashmi), consoles him, “Your wife is a good woman, don’t worry, all will be well. The problem is that when a bad guy sets his mind on wooing a woman, even the best of women fall prey to him!”
What is it that attracts nice girls to bad boys? Well of course, ‘nice’ is dull, and ‘bad’ spells excitement, mystery, adventure — the lure of the unknown. Opposites attract, true. Had it not been so, Beauty would have never fallen for the Beast in the popular fairytale. A good woman finds a bad guy as irresistible as children find a scary rollercoaster ride. Not only does he inhabit a world vastly different from hers but also his slick rendition of wellpractised compliments and flirtatious mannerisms rocks the very ground on which Miss Goody has been standing steady.
The equation works out well; good girls are nurturers and have an innate need to give and benefit people and the world around. In the bad guy they find the eternal taker, the perfect subject for their need to reform and look after. A man on the other hand is attracted by a nice girl as an “unattainable” target that challenges all that is macho and wild within him! He loves a good chase and the trophy at the end of it!
Bad guys, unlike the simple, nice ones, have exciting layers to them that a woman enjoys peeling off to discover hitherto undiscovered facets. The good guy is all there, the bad one awaits discovery. Normally the rake is smooth and at ease with his compliments, making a woman feel admired, sexy, exciting and wellloved. A woman’s sexuality is very dependent on the way she feels with a man, and if he can make her feel top of the world, even the most cautious woman can melt into a puddle of sensuality.
Typically, a rake will approach a woman he targets in a studied manner that is most often picked straight out of women’s popular romantic fiction. Having got her interested, he will back off a bit, giving her space, and arousing that little bit of insecurity! He knows the success of his modus operandi depends on basic good looks, a smooth demeanour and perfect timing — and he works on all.
However, even though the badboy-meets-good-girl story may be a great rollercoaster ride for a while, it usually ends in disaster. We all know of instances where girls have been swept off their feet by exciting guys and some years later, when the discovery period ends, have been left shattered and re gretful. Kavita (name changed), a reader, talks of the daily bouquets, chocolates or books she would receive from Jaydeep along with exciting little love notes in her college days. “Those days I seemed to come across him round every corner. He would recite poems, write songs for me and even sketched me painstakingly. I was swept off my feet like I never dreamt I would be. However once married, I soon discovered his totally possessive, insanely irrational and wildly promiscuous side. It was a disaster within the first few days, though it took me years to finally walk out! What a waste of precious years!”
In retrospect, Kavita blames herself for falling for Jaydeep’s act hook, line and sinker. “It was all too smooth and too much like romantic fiction. I should have realised that it was too good to be true! But I convinced myself into believing what I wanted to believe!”
True, when everything is too smooth and pat, one should never sit back and accept it as God’s gift! Stay alert and keep your wits around you. Refuse to be rushed into anything; there is never any harm in waiting till you are sure.
Kavita’s experience and the dialogue from Murder made me wonder whether only nice girls get attracted to bad guys? Don’t nice guys too get similarly attracted to bad girls? My mind went back some years to an aunt who, having married off her daughters, was exceedingly worried about her son. When I asked her why, she replied, “One has to be even more vigilant about a son than a daughter nowadays! You don’t know what kind of girls keep pursuing boys from good families and before you know it, the boy has been ensnared!”
So, it seems that what is true of a “bad boy” is equally true of a “bad girl”. Both can succeed in ensnaring a good specimen from the other sex, when they set their minds to it! Now, what attracts a nice boy to a bad girl? The same things of course. The ‘bad’ girl brings in the element of excitement and adventure that is missing in the good guy’s life. And if she sets her sights on him, he can barely believe his luck that she wants him! Typically “good” people are those who follow the tried and tested and stick to the normally acceptable societal mores. Those typecast as “bad” are the ones who break the mould and experiment outside the accepted. The rebels are a mysterious lot that spell perennial fascination for those that traditionally toe the line.
They not just attract and fascinate, but even leave the “good” guys with a feeling of panic, as if they may be missing out on the good things of life; their mundane life keeping them bereft of adventure and excitement! Any sudden need to run with the wild packs should be given due consideration before being indulged!
Flicking through channels, I chanced upon the umpteenth rerun of the movie, Murder. The scene I stumbled upon was Ashmit Patel faced with the evidence of his wife’s infidelity. The obviously embarrassed detective who has just presented him with pictures of his wife (played by Mallika Sherawat) and her paramour (Emran Hashmi), consoles him, “Your wife is a good woman, don’t worry, all will be well. The problem is that when a bad guy sets his mind on wooing a woman, even the best of women fall prey to him!”
What is it that attracts nice girls to bad boys? Well of course, ‘nice’ is dull, and ‘bad’ spells excitement, mystery, adventure — the lure of the unknown. Opposites attract, true. Had it not been so, Beauty would have never fallen for the Beast in the popular fairytale. A good woman finds a bad guy as irresistible as children find a scary rollercoaster ride. Not only does he inhabit a world vastly different from hers but also his slick rendition of wellpractised compliments and flirtatious mannerisms rocks the very ground on which Miss Goody has been standing steady.
The equation works out well; good girls are nurturers and have an innate need to give and benefit people and the world around. In the bad guy they find the eternal taker, the perfect subject for their need to reform and look after. A man on the other hand is attracted by a nice girl as an “unattainable” target that challenges all that is macho and wild within him! He loves a good chase and the trophy at the end of it!
Bad guys, unlike the simple, nice ones, have exciting layers to them that a woman enjoys peeling off to discover hitherto undiscovered facets. The good guy is all there, the bad one awaits discovery. Normally the rake is smooth and at ease with his compliments, making a woman feel admired, sexy, exciting and wellloved. A woman’s sexuality is very dependent on the way she feels with a man, and if he can make her feel top of the world, even the most cautious woman can melt into a puddle of sensuality.
Typically, a rake will approach a woman he targets in a studied manner that is most often picked straight out of women’s popular romantic fiction. Having got her interested, he will back off a bit, giving her space, and arousing that little bit of insecurity! He knows the success of his modus operandi depends on basic good looks, a smooth demeanour and perfect timing — and he works on all.
However, even though the badboy-meets-good-girl story may be a great rollercoaster ride for a while, it usually ends in disaster. We all know of instances where girls have been swept off their feet by exciting guys and some years later, when the discovery period ends, have been left shattered and re gretful. Kavita (name changed), a reader, talks of the daily bouquets, chocolates or books she would receive from Jaydeep along with exciting little love notes in her college days. “Those days I seemed to come across him round every corner. He would recite poems, write songs for me and even sketched me painstakingly. I was swept off my feet like I never dreamt I would be. However once married, I soon discovered his totally possessive, insanely irrational and wildly promiscuous side. It was a disaster within the first few days, though it took me years to finally walk out! What a waste of precious years!”
In retrospect, Kavita blames herself for falling for Jaydeep’s act hook, line and sinker. “It was all too smooth and too much like romantic fiction. I should have realised that it was too good to be true! But I convinced myself into believing what I wanted to believe!”
True, when everything is too smooth and pat, one should never sit back and accept it as God’s gift! Stay alert and keep your wits around you. Refuse to be rushed into anything; there is never any harm in waiting till you are sure.
Kavita’s experience and the dialogue from Murder made me wonder whether only nice girls get attracted to bad guys? Don’t nice guys too get similarly attracted to bad girls? My mind went back some years to an aunt who, having married off her daughters, was exceedingly worried about her son. When I asked her why, she replied, “One has to be even more vigilant about a son than a daughter nowadays! You don’t know what kind of girls keep pursuing boys from good families and before you know it, the boy has been ensnared!”
So, it seems that what is true of a “bad boy” is equally true of a “bad girl”. Both can succeed in ensnaring a good specimen from the other sex, when they set their minds to it! Now, what attracts a nice boy to a bad girl? The same things of course. The ‘bad’ girl brings in the element of excitement and adventure that is missing in the good guy’s life. And if she sets her sights on him, he can barely believe his luck that she wants him! Typically “good” people are those who follow the tried and tested and stick to the normally acceptable societal mores. Those typecast as “bad” are the ones who break the mould and experiment outside the accepted. The rebels are a mysterious lot that spell perennial fascination for those that traditionally toe the line.
They not just attract and fascinate, but even leave the “good” guys with a feeling of panic, as if they may be missing out on the good things of life; their mundane life keeping them bereft of adventure and excitement! Any sudden need to run with the wild packs should be given due consideration before being indulged!
10 Things men should never ask women
An author has come up with a list of 10 top dating tips to guide men on what they should never say to women.
David DeAngelo, author of "Double Your Dating", says there is nothing worse than making mistakes that will later be regretted and one way to avoid them is to remember the following, Bullz-Eye.com reported.
First of all , a man should never ask a woman if he can kiss her, as she will only say, a man should never "ask" for a kiss.
Asking her for a kiss will only make a man look like a boy, which is what a woman is not interested in, and even if she says "yes", it could mean she is just being polite, while on the inside her attraction meter will read a firm, "No".
Secondly , a man should never ask a woman if he can take her out on a date sometime, as she would like to be with a man who is a leader and in control, not someone who asks her permission to hit on her.
A man should confidently ask a woman out, by simply saying, "We should hang out... what's your number?" or tell her about a specific place he wants to take her to.
Thirdly , a man should never brag about the car he has or the kind of house he lives in, as it would seem like he is trying hard to impress her.
Women would be far more impressed by a man's material possessions if he does not mention them in conversation.
The fourth thing a man should never ask a woman is what she wants to do for the night, as she likes a "man with a plan".
The man needs to have a game plan before he calls her, so as to ensure that she will not be burdened with having to think about what to do.
Fifthly, a man should never ask a woman if she likes him, as this is one phrase that turns off a woman completely.
He should just assume that she likes him, and never ask the question, as it would look like he has no confidence.
The sixth tip is that a man should never ask a woman why she never answered his message, as one, it would show that he cared she did not reply back, and two, it would give her a guilt trip, which is seen as insecurity by women.
The seventh tip is that a man should never ask a woman how men she has slept with, as this shows that he is suffering from insecurity.
The eighth tip is that a man should never hint at a future date with a woman he has just met, as she not only wants but needs a guy who is somewhat of a "challenge", and will lose interest if she senses she has won.
The ninth tip is that a man should never end a phone conversation with a woman with a "next step", as firstly it would kill any spontaneity by being predictable, and secondly he would kill any chances of her calling him.
The tenth tip is that a man should never talk bad about a woman's guy friends especially if he hasn't met them and doesn't know her very well, as this is the fastest way for her to mark him as "insecure".
David DeAngelo, author of "Double Your Dating", says there is nothing worse than making mistakes that will later be regretted and one way to avoid them is to remember the following, Bullz-Eye.com reported.
First of all , a man should never ask a woman if he can kiss her, as she will only say, a man should never "ask" for a kiss.
Asking her for a kiss will only make a man look like a boy, which is what a woman is not interested in, and even if she says "yes", it could mean she is just being polite, while on the inside her attraction meter will read a firm, "No".
Secondly , a man should never ask a woman if he can take her out on a date sometime, as she would like to be with a man who is a leader and in control, not someone who asks her permission to hit on her.
A man should confidently ask a woman out, by simply saying, "We should hang out... what's your number?" or tell her about a specific place he wants to take her to.
Thirdly , a man should never brag about the car he has or the kind of house he lives in, as it would seem like he is trying hard to impress her.
Women would be far more impressed by a man's material possessions if he does not mention them in conversation.
The fourth thing a man should never ask a woman is what she wants to do for the night, as she likes a "man with a plan".
The man needs to have a game plan before he calls her, so as to ensure that she will not be burdened with having to think about what to do.
Fifthly, a man should never ask a woman if she likes him, as this is one phrase that turns off a woman completely.
He should just assume that she likes him, and never ask the question, as it would look like he has no confidence.
The sixth tip is that a man should never ask a woman why she never answered his message, as one, it would show that he cared she did not reply back, and two, it would give her a guilt trip, which is seen as insecurity by women.
The seventh tip is that a man should never ask a woman how men she has slept with, as this shows that he is suffering from insecurity.
The eighth tip is that a man should never hint at a future date with a woman he has just met, as she not only wants but needs a guy who is somewhat of a "challenge", and will lose interest if she senses she has won.
The ninth tip is that a man should never end a phone conversation with a woman with a "next step", as firstly it would kill any spontaneity by being predictable, and secondly he would kill any chances of her calling him.
The tenth tip is that a man should never talk bad about a woman's guy friends especially if he hasn't met them and doesn't know her very well, as this is the fastest way for her to mark him as "insecure".
Virginity: A virtue or a curse?
Mansi, a 24-year-old girl on the verge of matrimony is facing a commotion of mixed thoughts. Her nupital excitement is climaxing at two levels. On one hand, while she's awaiting stepping into a realm of new relations, on the other, her 'virginity-status' is adding to her pre wedding jitters.
Mansi is getting sleepless nights wondering what if her better half comes to know that she's not a virgin? Will he accept her if she dares to bare the truth? Can she hide it, if she tries? These questions popping into her mind prior to D-Night is adding to her nervous anxiety. However, she's not alone as there are many women on the verge of tying the knot who face the same dilemmas.
So, is losing one's virginity before marriage still a big deal? Let's explore...
Kalpana Sharma, a Delhi based journalist, heralds the importance of open ended communication, adding that her conjugal relationship only improved after she and her partner chose to candidly share sagas of their steamy pasts with one other. "My guy wasn't a virgin and he revealed this in our first few days of courtship. This gave me the courage to share my own experiences with him and he was equally cool with it. I think as long as the past doesn't affect your present, it's cool."
For Rahul Rastogi, a 26- year-old, chartered accountant, revealing one's sexual past is an individual's personal prerogative, which should be respected. "If I were to discover on my first night that my partner is not a virgin, I would take it well, as at least one of us is more experienced," he reveals. Ujjwal Sharma, finds the answer in the changing social trends, when he says, "In today's age, I don't expect my partner to be a virgin as it has become a trend to lose one's virginity even without love."
Discarding one's past and cooking up a yummy future is the new relationship mantra amongst newly weds. New age lovers are matured enough to let the bygones be bygones and not allow their past baggage to ruin their future. "When one embarks upon a new journey with their partner, all that should matter is the present and the future," says Arshi Uppal, a PR executive, based in Delhi. "It matters only if you are one. I won't leave my wife for her past, but will definitely make sure she stays loyal with me for the rest of her life," believes Lokesh Verma, a Delhi based tattoo artist.
The temptation to take the plunge becomes tough to resist, in a day and age when sex comes naturally in relationships of the heart. And modern day go-getters have no qualms in accepting that their partners may have gone the whole way in their past affairs. But, despite some broad minded couples, there are still those who relate virginity to morality. For them the bond of the unbroken hymen still scores over the bond of love and commitment. But what if you marry one of these?
Don't fret! Now, while we're are not talking about a technical 'hymen reconstruction' or innovative ways of faking virginity, rather we are doling out some fun formulas.
Mansi is getting sleepless nights wondering what if her better half comes to know that she's not a virgin? Will he accept her if she dares to bare the truth? Can she hide it, if she tries? These questions popping into her mind prior to D-Night is adding to her nervous anxiety. However, she's not alone as there are many women on the verge of tying the knot who face the same dilemmas.
So, is losing one's virginity before marriage still a big deal? Let's explore...
Kalpana Sharma, a Delhi based journalist, heralds the importance of open ended communication, adding that her conjugal relationship only improved after she and her partner chose to candidly share sagas of their steamy pasts with one other. "My guy wasn't a virgin and he revealed this in our first few days of courtship. This gave me the courage to share my own experiences with him and he was equally cool with it. I think as long as the past doesn't affect your present, it's cool."
For Rahul Rastogi, a 26- year-old, chartered accountant, revealing one's sexual past is an individual's personal prerogative, which should be respected. "If I were to discover on my first night that my partner is not a virgin, I would take it well, as at least one of us is more experienced," he reveals. Ujjwal Sharma, finds the answer in the changing social trends, when he says, "In today's age, I don't expect my partner to be a virgin as it has become a trend to lose one's virginity even without love."
Discarding one's past and cooking up a yummy future is the new relationship mantra amongst newly weds. New age lovers are matured enough to let the bygones be bygones and not allow their past baggage to ruin their future. "When one embarks upon a new journey with their partner, all that should matter is the present and the future," says Arshi Uppal, a PR executive, based in Delhi. "It matters only if you are one. I won't leave my wife for her past, but will definitely make sure she stays loyal with me for the rest of her life," believes Lokesh Verma, a Delhi based tattoo artist.
The temptation to take the plunge becomes tough to resist, in a day and age when sex comes naturally in relationships of the heart. And modern day go-getters have no qualms in accepting that their partners may have gone the whole way in their past affairs. But, despite some broad minded couples, there are still those who relate virginity to morality. For them the bond of the unbroken hymen still scores over the bond of love and commitment. But what if you marry one of these?
Don't fret! Now, while we're are not talking about a technical 'hymen reconstruction' or innovative ways of faking virginity, rather we are doling out some fun formulas.
X-rated porn for great sex
Sex is a natural act of love between couples which is incomplete without deep feelings for each another.
But what if your sex life is witnessing a lull where the action between the sheets is lifeless and thoroughly unimaginative. To battle this dry spell, a lot of modern couples are taking recourse to watching sexually explicit videos in an effort to spice up their conjugal relationships.
Pornography is as old as human kind and most couples sometime or the other have viewed some sort of pornography together. From "soft" porn scenes in Hollywood flicks like Unfaithful with Diane Lane and Olivier Martinez, or Body Heat starring Kathleen Turner and William Hurt to triple X rated movies, a lot of couples have taken recourse to sampling pornography. Observing couples in an erotic sex act has always been an eye opener for many as much as it forms a source of pleasure.
At times, pornography is a potent catalyst which has helped enhance the sexual act between married couples who may be ignorant about experimental sex moves. Coming to their rescue, where pornography has helped them master new techniques and "ways to pleasure" each other.
The viewing of pornography is no longer considered as "sinful" as getting aroused via suggestive visuals often leads to couples indulging each other in bold sexual moves. Instances of modern couples filming their love act like their Hollywood counterparts also abound. Even therapists seem to suggest that pornography as a unique a way to revive sexual desire.
The only problems arise when both partners are not open to watching porn together. Take the case of Nishta (name changed), 28, a product manager in Mumbai who tolerates her man's habit of watching pornography, but claims to feeling deeply insecure with his penchant for the perfectly sculpted bodies of the porn stars.
She says," My husband told me lots of his friends' girlfriends have gone in for plastic surgery to get that perfect hot bod. He claims that I'll possess an awesome body. But, I'm unsure whether surgery will improve our sex life. My husband is selfish sexually and I blame his obsession with pornography for it".
The main question that arises here is - does pornography have a morally justified lace in a marriage? According to a debate on Times of India.com on whether couples are okay with watching porn together, 53 pct felt that it was perfectly natural, while 43 pct held it to be morally degrading. Some of the views expressed in the debate reveal the divide in popular mindsets. "Sex is the best therapy for couples and watching porn adds to the zing in life. As the wise say making love once is like walking 20 kms!" holds Kaydee, from West Africa.
"Why not? It's better to watch porn together and live your sexual fantasies with your wife rather than cheating her and thinking of someone else!!" claims another reader from Ahmedabad. Mita Seth, a 35-year-old housewife adds that "pornography should be an aid to pleasure not the source. If one partner shows more interest in viewing pornography than in his or her spouse, then there lies a serious problem.
The viewing of pornographic videos should be an activity based on mutual consent. The videos should never be the sole source of pleasure". Psychiatrist Dr. Samir Parikh is of the opinion that, "Pornography may or may not help; it depends on the personalities of the partners. Sometimes it may help if both are interested, but if not then it may cause a rift in the relationship. Also, the key to a good sexual life is in the overall relationship and the mutual fun. Porn could act as a trigger for short term gains in some, but certainly not for long".
"Mind moves matter. So, porn is an evil thing which ultimately leads both partners to become vicious in the long run," holds another reader from Nanded. Ayesha from Mumbai adds, "Porn is not a good way to spice up one's bedroom life. It's just a method to release frustration."
Couples clearly stand divided on the pros and cons of watching pornography together. So, if you are game for some naughty viewing perhaps keeping in mind these good and bad pointers will help you keep porn as a healthy habit which doesn't catapult into a sex obsession:
Cons:
- The guilt and mistrust about pornography can tear a marriage apart.
- Turning to pornography may cause your spouse to withdraw from the real relationship because of the instant gratification one receives from it.
- When your husband/wife views porn, you may feel disrespected. Some spouses start feeling insecure that they are not good enough for their mates. This can create a wedge in the marriage.
- Pornography could make it difficult for one of the partners to view sex as a loving form of communication. As a result, pornography can decrease sexual satisfaction within your marriage.
Pros:
- Watching X-rated porn doesn't mean your partner doesn't enjoy making love to you anymore.
- A sexual relationship can be enhanced when your imagination is allowed to run free.
- Sexual intimacy is not being replaced with porn. Don't allow the medium to rake up issues in your marriage.
- If your partner is viewing porn, it can only hurt you if you allow it to. If you aren't insecure and have a good self-image, your partner's porn use won't hurt you.
But what if your sex life is witnessing a lull where the action between the sheets is lifeless and thoroughly unimaginative. To battle this dry spell, a lot of modern couples are taking recourse to watching sexually explicit videos in an effort to spice up their conjugal relationships.
Pornography is as old as human kind and most couples sometime or the other have viewed some sort of pornography together. From "soft" porn scenes in Hollywood flicks like Unfaithful with Diane Lane and Olivier Martinez, or Body Heat starring Kathleen Turner and William Hurt to triple X rated movies, a lot of couples have taken recourse to sampling pornography. Observing couples in an erotic sex act has always been an eye opener for many as much as it forms a source of pleasure.
At times, pornography is a potent catalyst which has helped enhance the sexual act between married couples who may be ignorant about experimental sex moves. Coming to their rescue, where pornography has helped them master new techniques and "ways to pleasure" each other.
The viewing of pornography is no longer considered as "sinful" as getting aroused via suggestive visuals often leads to couples indulging each other in bold sexual moves. Instances of modern couples filming their love act like their Hollywood counterparts also abound. Even therapists seem to suggest that pornography as a unique a way to revive sexual desire.
The only problems arise when both partners are not open to watching porn together. Take the case of Nishta (name changed), 28, a product manager in Mumbai who tolerates her man's habit of watching pornography, but claims to feeling deeply insecure with his penchant for the perfectly sculpted bodies of the porn stars.
She says," My husband told me lots of his friends' girlfriends have gone in for plastic surgery to get that perfect hot bod. He claims that I'll possess an awesome body. But, I'm unsure whether surgery will improve our sex life. My husband is selfish sexually and I blame his obsession with pornography for it".
The main question that arises here is - does pornography have a morally justified lace in a marriage? According to a debate on Times of India.com on whether couples are okay with watching porn together, 53 pct felt that it was perfectly natural, while 43 pct held it to be morally degrading. Some of the views expressed in the debate reveal the divide in popular mindsets. "Sex is the best therapy for couples and watching porn adds to the zing in life. As the wise say making love once is like walking 20 kms!" holds Kaydee, from West Africa.
"Why not? It's better to watch porn together and live your sexual fantasies with your wife rather than cheating her and thinking of someone else!!" claims another reader from Ahmedabad. Mita Seth, a 35-year-old housewife adds that "pornography should be an aid to pleasure not the source. If one partner shows more interest in viewing pornography than in his or her spouse, then there lies a serious problem.
The viewing of pornographic videos should be an activity based on mutual consent. The videos should never be the sole source of pleasure". Psychiatrist Dr. Samir Parikh is of the opinion that, "Pornography may or may not help; it depends on the personalities of the partners. Sometimes it may help if both are interested, but if not then it may cause a rift in the relationship. Also, the key to a good sexual life is in the overall relationship and the mutual fun. Porn could act as a trigger for short term gains in some, but certainly not for long".
"Mind moves matter. So, porn is an evil thing which ultimately leads both partners to become vicious in the long run," holds another reader from Nanded. Ayesha from Mumbai adds, "Porn is not a good way to spice up one's bedroom life. It's just a method to release frustration."
Couples clearly stand divided on the pros and cons of watching pornography together. So, if you are game for some naughty viewing perhaps keeping in mind these good and bad pointers will help you keep porn as a healthy habit which doesn't catapult into a sex obsession:
Cons:
- The guilt and mistrust about pornography can tear a marriage apart.
- Turning to pornography may cause your spouse to withdraw from the real relationship because of the instant gratification one receives from it.
- When your husband/wife views porn, you may feel disrespected. Some spouses start feeling insecure that they are not good enough for their mates. This can create a wedge in the marriage.
- Pornography could make it difficult for one of the partners to view sex as a loving form of communication. As a result, pornography can decrease sexual satisfaction within your marriage.
Pros:
- Watching X-rated porn doesn't mean your partner doesn't enjoy making love to you anymore.
- A sexual relationship can be enhanced when your imagination is allowed to run free.
- Sexual intimacy is not being replaced with porn. Don't allow the medium to rake up issues in your marriage.
- If your partner is viewing porn, it can only hurt you if you allow it to. If you aren't insecure and have a good self-image, your partner's porn use won't hurt you.
Why women's breasts are getting bigger
As women in Britain welcome the arrival of the L-cup bra by Bravissimo, a lingerie label for larger sized breasts, one tends to wonder - what is it that's causing women's breasts to grow larger and larger?
Fat seems the most plausible answer.
"Fat is laid down on breasts as much as thighs or bottoms. We are experiencing an obesity -epidemic, so the increase in women's measurements isn't that surprising," the Daily Mail quoted Professor Michael Baum, an expert in breast cancer, as saying.
But that can't be true for those who are slim elsewhere.
Dr Marilyn Glenville, a nutritionist -specialising in women's health and hormones, said, "It's clear that we're not just talking about fat, but increased levels of breast -tissue, too."
"So we have to look at what stimulates breast tissue growth - and that's oestrogen, the female sex hormone. -Oestrogen is what changes our body shape during puberty."
Glenville said that 'breast-enhancing' -supplements could be to blame. In addition, today's young women were born to the first -generation of women on the contraceptive Pill.
She added that pregnancy and breastfeeding have a positive effect because they control the hormones, which stimulate the growth of new cells in breasts but with more women opting for late pregnancies, there is an increased number of monthly cycles and therefore, more exposure to oestrogen.
And there's no way to avoid them because they are found in items we use on a daily basis, just as cow's milk.
"Pesticides, plastics and -cosmetics are my main concerns. The same goes for -xenoestrogens in the -deodorants, make-up and moisturisers we use," Glenville said.
"We apply them to our skin and often directly on to the breast. Our skin absorbs those chemicals readily. It is not inconceivable that those chemicals stimulate growth in breast tissue."
We also live more sedentary lifestyles these days, which may mean we metabolise these hormones less quickly, she added.
Fat seems the most plausible answer.
"Fat is laid down on breasts as much as thighs or bottoms. We are experiencing an obesity -epidemic, so the increase in women's measurements isn't that surprising," the Daily Mail quoted Professor Michael Baum, an expert in breast cancer, as saying.
But that can't be true for those who are slim elsewhere.
Dr Marilyn Glenville, a nutritionist -specialising in women's health and hormones, said, "It's clear that we're not just talking about fat, but increased levels of breast -tissue, too."
"So we have to look at what stimulates breast tissue growth - and that's oestrogen, the female sex hormone. -Oestrogen is what changes our body shape during puberty."
Glenville said that 'breast-enhancing' -supplements could be to blame. In addition, today's young women were born to the first -generation of women on the contraceptive Pill.
She added that pregnancy and breastfeeding have a positive effect because they control the hormones, which stimulate the growth of new cells in breasts but with more women opting for late pregnancies, there is an increased number of monthly cycles and therefore, more exposure to oestrogen.
And there's no way to avoid them because they are found in items we use on a daily basis, just as cow's milk.
"Pesticides, plastics and -cosmetics are my main concerns. The same goes for -xenoestrogens in the -deodorants, make-up and moisturisers we use," Glenville said.
"We apply them to our skin and often directly on to the breast. Our skin absorbs those chemicals readily. It is not inconceivable that those chemicals stimulate growth in breast tissue."
We also live more sedentary lifestyles these days, which may mean we metabolise these hormones less quickly, she added.
Report: Israel arming, training settlers
The Israeli regime plans to arm and train settlers in the occupied West Bank to confront Palestinians as the Palestinian Authority (PA) intends to seek UN membership in September, reports say.
According to a document acquired by Israeli Haaretz newspaper, the army has distributed tear gas and stun grenades among settlers to disperse Palestinian demonstrators, the Israeli newspaper reported on Tuesday.
The Israeli military has also been providing special training to settlement security chiefs and their teams at army bases and most settlers already have assault rifles and pistols, the report said.
The move is based on the army's assumption that a Palestinian declaration of independence will lead to public uprisings “which will mainly include mass disorder.”
According to an Israeli army spokesman, the army “is holding an ongoing professional dialogue with elements in the settlement leadership … for possible scenarios. "The Central Command has recently completed much training for the emergency response squads, and this training is ongoing.”
The spokesman, however, refused to go into the details on operational readiness.
The army has specified two “virtual lines,” for each of the settlements close to Palestinian villages.
If Palestinian demonstrators cross the first line, they will be met with tear gas and if they cross the second line they will be shot in the leg, the report says.
Israeli officials have warned that the stepped-up readiness will last for at least several weeks.
The Palestinian Authority has declared September 20 as the date when it would apply for the United Nations' recognition of Palestine as an independent state.
More than 100 countries have so far officially recognized Palestine as a sovereign state based on the 1967 borders, the boundaries that existed before Israel captured and annexed East al-Quds (Jerusalem), the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Israeli Foreign Ministry sources estimate that 130-140 countries will vote in favor of the Palestinians.
According to a document acquired by Israeli Haaretz newspaper, the army has distributed tear gas and stun grenades among settlers to disperse Palestinian demonstrators, the Israeli newspaper reported on Tuesday.
The Israeli military has also been providing special training to settlement security chiefs and their teams at army bases and most settlers already have assault rifles and pistols, the report said.
The move is based on the army's assumption that a Palestinian declaration of independence will lead to public uprisings “which will mainly include mass disorder.”
According to an Israeli army spokesman, the army “is holding an ongoing professional dialogue with elements in the settlement leadership … for possible scenarios. "The Central Command has recently completed much training for the emergency response squads, and this training is ongoing.”
The spokesman, however, refused to go into the details on operational readiness.
The army has specified two “virtual lines,” for each of the settlements close to Palestinian villages.
If Palestinian demonstrators cross the first line, they will be met with tear gas and if they cross the second line they will be shot in the leg, the report says.
Israeli officials have warned that the stepped-up readiness will last for at least several weeks.
The Palestinian Authority has declared September 20 as the date when it would apply for the United Nations' recognition of Palestine as an independent state.
More than 100 countries have so far officially recognized Palestine as a sovereign state based on the 1967 borders, the boundaries that existed before Israel captured and annexed East al-Quds (Jerusalem), the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Israeli Foreign Ministry sources estimate that 130-140 countries will vote in favor of the Palestinians.
Britain told to spy on Muslim students
The UK government, in yet another Islamophobic step, has instructed university staff including lecturers, chaplains and porters to report Muslim students who are depressed or isolated to the police.
As part of the government's new strategy and under its new guidance to combating extremism, university lecturers and student union officials are obliged to inform the police in case they witness a Muslim student behaving as if he/she is depressed or isolated, or there is fear the student might become radicalized.
But, student union officials and university lecturers expressed shock at the new guidelines, which have resulted in deep discomfort among them and are seen as an infringement of students' civil liberties.
Officials implementing the government's revamped 'Prevent' strategy are training frontline university employees in how to spot students vulnerable to extremism.
Documents handed to staff claim that students who seem depressed or who are estranged from their families, who bear political grievances, or who use extremist websites or have poor access to mainstream religious instruction could be at risk of radicalization.
The National Union of Students has told its officers that they do not have to provide police with details about students unless they are presented with a warrant.
James Haywood, president of Goldsmiths college students' union in south-east London, met two Prevent officials last week. He said they began by asking about Muslim students and whether the college had problems with its Islamic Society.
"We were appalled to have Prevent officers asking us to effectively spy on our Muslim students. To pass on details of a student who the police consider 'vulnerable' is not only morally repugnant but is against the confidential nature of pastoral support. After the rise of hate groups such as the English Defence League, and the recent massacre in Norway, why are Prevent not also telling us to refer on students who have an irrational hatred of Islam?" he said.
Universities that agree to the renewed version of the scheme are trained to refer "at risk" students to Prevent officials. The student is then monitored by a panel including a detective from Scotland Yard, who assess any potential terror threat. The student is not made aware at any stage that they are under investigation.
The Prevent strategy was first launched in 2007 and sought to stop people becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism.
A recent government report said there were 40 English universities where there could be a "particular risk" of radicalization, although the names of the universities have not been released.
The University and College Union (UCU) said that the government's strategy risked damaging the relationship between staff and students. "Staff have made it quite clear that they do not wish to police their students or engage in any activity that might erode the trust between them and students," it said.
The Federation of Student Islamic Societies, an organisation that provides support to Muslim students across the UK and Ireland, said: "Spying on a completely innocent group of people is an affront to our human rights. Islamic Societies and Muslim students make a positive contribution to British civic life - and they must be supported.
"We have continued in our dialogue with the government to say that engaging with Muslim students, not spying on them, is what will make our country safer and more cohesive. Prevent is long-discredited now in civic society. We need an intelligent approach to security policy rather than one driven by political motives."
Professor Ted Cantle, executive chair of the Institute of Community Cohesion, warned that the government's new policy risked stigmatizing Muslims.
"The government shouldn't be bringing in people who have little understanding of the Muslim community and radicalization and asking them to pronounce and point the finger," he said.
As part of the government's new strategy and under its new guidance to combating extremism, university lecturers and student union officials are obliged to inform the police in case they witness a Muslim student behaving as if he/she is depressed or isolated, or there is fear the student might become radicalized.
But, student union officials and university lecturers expressed shock at the new guidelines, which have resulted in deep discomfort among them and are seen as an infringement of students' civil liberties.
Officials implementing the government's revamped 'Prevent' strategy are training frontline university employees in how to spot students vulnerable to extremism.
Documents handed to staff claim that students who seem depressed or who are estranged from their families, who bear political grievances, or who use extremist websites or have poor access to mainstream religious instruction could be at risk of radicalization.
The National Union of Students has told its officers that they do not have to provide police with details about students unless they are presented with a warrant.
James Haywood, president of Goldsmiths college students' union in south-east London, met two Prevent officials last week. He said they began by asking about Muslim students and whether the college had problems with its Islamic Society.
"We were appalled to have Prevent officers asking us to effectively spy on our Muslim students. To pass on details of a student who the police consider 'vulnerable' is not only morally repugnant but is against the confidential nature of pastoral support. After the rise of hate groups such as the English Defence League, and the recent massacre in Norway, why are Prevent not also telling us to refer on students who have an irrational hatred of Islam?" he said.
Universities that agree to the renewed version of the scheme are trained to refer "at risk" students to Prevent officials. The student is then monitored by a panel including a detective from Scotland Yard, who assess any potential terror threat. The student is not made aware at any stage that they are under investigation.
The Prevent strategy was first launched in 2007 and sought to stop people becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism.
A recent government report said there were 40 English universities where there could be a "particular risk" of radicalization, although the names of the universities have not been released.
The University and College Union (UCU) said that the government's strategy risked damaging the relationship between staff and students. "Staff have made it quite clear that they do not wish to police their students or engage in any activity that might erode the trust between them and students," it said.
The Federation of Student Islamic Societies, an organisation that provides support to Muslim students across the UK and Ireland, said: "Spying on a completely innocent group of people is an affront to our human rights. Islamic Societies and Muslim students make a positive contribution to British civic life - and they must be supported.
"We have continued in our dialogue with the government to say that engaging with Muslim students, not spying on them, is what will make our country safer and more cohesive. Prevent is long-discredited now in civic society. We need an intelligent approach to security policy rather than one driven by political motives."
Professor Ted Cantle, executive chair of the Institute of Community Cohesion, warned that the government's new policy risked stigmatizing Muslims.
"The government shouldn't be bringing in people who have little understanding of the Muslim community and radicalization and asking them to pronounce and point the finger," he said.
Pentagon errs in 'record contract'
The US Defense Department has erred by a factor of 1, 000, while announcing the value of its most lucrative ever single contract.
The supposedly huge $24 billion deal was announced to have gone to the Boeing Company for engineering support of the Air Force's KC-135 refueling fleet.
"No one at Boeing knows of a contract of anything of this magnitude," said Forrest Gossett, a company spokesman.
A military spokesman, Ralph Monson, said that the real deal was for $24 million which shows a more than $23.9 billion difference, Reuters reported.
"The correct figure was $24 million," he announced, adding that only three extra zeros had caused the difference. ”No clue how," he said, adding "Thanks for bringing it to our attention.
The supposedly huge $24 billion deal was announced to have gone to the Boeing Company for engineering support of the Air Force's KC-135 refueling fleet.
"No one at Boeing knows of a contract of anything of this magnitude," said Forrest Gossett, a company spokesman.
A military spokesman, Ralph Monson, said that the real deal was for $24 million which shows a more than $23.9 billion difference, Reuters reported.
"The correct figure was $24 million," he announced, adding that only three extra zeros had caused the difference. ”No clue how," he said, adding "Thanks for bringing it to our attention.
'US wasted billions in Iraq, Afghan wars'
A report by a US Congressional commission reveals that the Pentagon has squandered billions of dollars of taxpayer money in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Commission on Wartime Contracting has lambasted the US Department of Defense (DoD) in its latest report for the misuse of over $30 billion on contracts and grants in Afghanistan and Iraq, Bloomberg reported Monday.
The report is scheduled to be submitted to the Congress on Wednesday.
Christopher Shays and Mark Thibault, co-chairmen of the bipartisan commission, report that “major changes in law and policy" will be required to prevent such an amount of waste in future conflicts.
The commission has accused the Pentagon of giving out military contracts without “effective competition,” saying that its shoddy management of the task has caused the waste of at least one in every six dollars of the $192.5 billion spent on leases and grants in Afghanistan and Iraq from fiscal year 2002 to the middle of 2011.
Expenditures are expected to climb to $206 billion by the end of this fiscal year on September 30, according to released figures.
An additional $30 billion “could again turn into waste if the host governments are unable or unwilling to sustain US-funded projects after our involvement ends,” the report adds.
The US military has increasingly relied on private companies since the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 and Iraq in 2003, with the number of contractors in the war zones at times exceeding that of deployed military forces.
In 2010, the US government increased its military spending by 2.8 percent to $698 billion -- about six times as much as China, the second-greatest military spender -- followed by Britain, France and Russia, according to Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
The US government has reportedly spent over $1 trillion in taxpayer money on its wars in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2001. Some experts estimate indirect costs, such as interest payments on the additional government debt, exceed the direct costs.
The Commission on Wartime Contracting has lambasted the US Department of Defense (DoD) in its latest report for the misuse of over $30 billion on contracts and grants in Afghanistan and Iraq, Bloomberg reported Monday.
The report is scheduled to be submitted to the Congress on Wednesday.
Christopher Shays and Mark Thibault, co-chairmen of the bipartisan commission, report that “major changes in law and policy" will be required to prevent such an amount of waste in future conflicts.
The commission has accused the Pentagon of giving out military contracts without “effective competition,” saying that its shoddy management of the task has caused the waste of at least one in every six dollars of the $192.5 billion spent on leases and grants in Afghanistan and Iraq from fiscal year 2002 to the middle of 2011.
Expenditures are expected to climb to $206 billion by the end of this fiscal year on September 30, according to released figures.
An additional $30 billion “could again turn into waste if the host governments are unable or unwilling to sustain US-funded projects after our involvement ends,” the report adds.
The US military has increasingly relied on private companies since the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 and Iraq in 2003, with the number of contractors in the war zones at times exceeding that of deployed military forces.
In 2010, the US government increased its military spending by 2.8 percent to $698 billion -- about six times as much as China, the second-greatest military spender -- followed by Britain, France and Russia, according to Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
The US government has reportedly spent over $1 trillion in taxpayer money on its wars in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2001. Some experts estimate indirect costs, such as interest payments on the additional government debt, exceed the direct costs.
US has deadliest month in Afghan war
August 2011 has become the deadliest month for US troops in the decade-long war in Afghanistan with 66 American soldiers killed in the month.
The figure, released by the Associated Press on Tuesday, eclipsed the earlier figure of 65 belonging to July 2010.
Most fatalities were those of an August 6 helicopter crash in which 30 US troops lost their lives. The victims were aboard a Chinook shot down by Taliban militants in Afghanistan's Wardak Province in the single deadliest incident of the Afghan war.
Twenty-three other American troops died this month in Kandahar and Helmand Provinces in southern Afghanistan. The remaining 13 were killed in eastern Afghanistan.
Besides the 66 Americans killed so far this month, the US-led NATO coalition also suffered the loss of two British, four French, one New Zealander, one Australian, one Polish and five other troops whose nationalities have not yet been disclosed.
So far this year, 403 US-led soldiers, including at least 299 Americans, have been killed in Afghanistan, according to the AP tally.
There are currently about 150,000 US-led foreign troops in Afghanistan, almost 100,000 of them American forces.
US President Barack Obama has ordered the withdrawal of the 33,000 extra troops he dispatched to the war, with 10,000 to be out this year and another 23,000 to be withdrawn by the summer of 2012, leaving about 68,000 US troops on the ground in Afghanistan.
The figure, released by the Associated Press on Tuesday, eclipsed the earlier figure of 65 belonging to July 2010.
Most fatalities were those of an August 6 helicopter crash in which 30 US troops lost their lives. The victims were aboard a Chinook shot down by Taliban militants in Afghanistan's Wardak Province in the single deadliest incident of the Afghan war.
Twenty-three other American troops died this month in Kandahar and Helmand Provinces in southern Afghanistan. The remaining 13 were killed in eastern Afghanistan.
Besides the 66 Americans killed so far this month, the US-led NATO coalition also suffered the loss of two British, four French, one New Zealander, one Australian, one Polish and five other troops whose nationalities have not yet been disclosed.
So far this year, 403 US-led soldiers, including at least 299 Americans, have been killed in Afghanistan, according to the AP tally.
There are currently about 150,000 US-led foreign troops in Afghanistan, almost 100,000 of them American forces.
US President Barack Obama has ordered the withdrawal of the 33,000 extra troops he dispatched to the war, with 10,000 to be out this year and another 23,000 to be withdrawn by the summer of 2012, leaving about 68,000 US troops on the ground in Afghanistan.
One killed in Danish mosque Shooting
A shooting incident outside a mosque in the Danish capital of Copenhagen has killed at least one person and wounded some others, police say.
Danish police officials say the shooting occurred in a parking lot next to the mosque after Muslim prayers marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, the Copenhagen Post reported.
Witnesses told local media that some 15-20 shots were fired from a car driving by as hundreds of worshippers were leaving the Muslim Cultural Institute.
"It's horrible. It's not a day of festivities anymore. I can't stop thinking about the fact that it was a poor young man heading home to his parents to celebrate that Ramadan was over - and maybe some siblings sitting there waiting for him to come home and they were going to eat together and he's not coming home now because somebody decided to kill him,” said Jibran Sarwar, one of the witnesses on the scene.
The Institute was founded in the late 1970, and includes both a mosque and several other facilities where Islam is being taught in Danish to children.
The institute has been frequented by many Muslims of South Asian origins. The developments come in backdrop of a dramatic rise of Islamophobia in several Western countries.
Danish police officials say the shooting occurred in a parking lot next to the mosque after Muslim prayers marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, the Copenhagen Post reported.
Witnesses told local media that some 15-20 shots were fired from a car driving by as hundreds of worshippers were leaving the Muslim Cultural Institute.
"It's horrible. It's not a day of festivities anymore. I can't stop thinking about the fact that it was a poor young man heading home to his parents to celebrate that Ramadan was over - and maybe some siblings sitting there waiting for him to come home and they were going to eat together and he's not coming home now because somebody decided to kill him,” said Jibran Sarwar, one of the witnesses on the scene.
The Institute was founded in the late 1970, and includes both a mosque and several other facilities where Islam is being taught in Danish to children.
The institute has been frequented by many Muslims of South Asian origins. The developments come in backdrop of a dramatic rise of Islamophobia in several Western countries.
Facebook pays for security loopholes
Facebook has spent $40,000 (£25,000) in the first 21 days of a program that rewards the discovery of security bugs.
The bug bounty program aims to encourage security researchers to help harden Facebook against attack.
One security researcher has been rewarded with more than $7,000 for finding six serious bugs in the social networking site.
The program runs alongside Facebook's efforts to police the code it creates that keeps the social site running.
A blog post by Facebook chief security officer Joe Sullivan revealed some information about the early days of the bug bounty program.
He said the program had made Facebook more secure by introducing the networking site to "novel attack vectors, and helping us improve lots of corners in our code".
The minimum amount paid for a bug is $500, said Mr Sullivan, up to a maximum of $5000 for the most serious loopholes. The maximum bounty has already been paid once, he said.
Many cyber criminals and vandals have targeted Facebook in many different ways to extract useful information from people, promote spam or fake goods.
Continue reading the main story
“
Start Quote
It's hardly surprising that the service is riddled with rogue apps and viral scams”
Graham Cluley
Sophos
Mr Sullivan said Facebook had internal bug-hunting teams, used external auditors to vet its code and ran "bug-a-thons" to hunt out mistakes but it regularly received reports about glitches from independent security researchers.
Facebook set up a system to handle these reports in 2010 which promised not to take legal action against those that find bugs and gave it chance to assess them.
Paying those that report problems was the logical next step for the disclosure system, he said.
Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos, said many other firms, including Google and Mozilla, run similar schemes that have proved useful in rooting out bugs.
However, he said, many criminally-minded bug spotters might get more for what they find if they sell the knowledge on an underground market.
He added that the bug bounty scheme might be missing the biggest source of security problems on Facebook.
"They're specifically not going to reward people for identifying rogue third party Facebook apps, clickjacking scams and the like," he said. "It's those sorts of problems which are much more commonly encountered by Facebook users and have arguably impacted more people."
Facebook should consider setting up a "walled garden" that only allowed vetted applications from approved developers to connect to the social networking site, he said.
"Facebook claims there are over one million developers on the Facebook platform, so it's hardly surprising that the service is riddled with rogue apps and viral scams," he said.
The bug bounty program aims to encourage security researchers to help harden Facebook against attack.
One security researcher has been rewarded with more than $7,000 for finding six serious bugs in the social networking site.
The program runs alongside Facebook's efforts to police the code it creates that keeps the social site running.
A blog post by Facebook chief security officer Joe Sullivan revealed some information about the early days of the bug bounty program.
He said the program had made Facebook more secure by introducing the networking site to "novel attack vectors, and helping us improve lots of corners in our code".
The minimum amount paid for a bug is $500, said Mr Sullivan, up to a maximum of $5000 for the most serious loopholes. The maximum bounty has already been paid once, he said.
Many cyber criminals and vandals have targeted Facebook in many different ways to extract useful information from people, promote spam or fake goods.
Continue reading the main story
“
Start Quote
It's hardly surprising that the service is riddled with rogue apps and viral scams”
Graham Cluley
Sophos
Mr Sullivan said Facebook had internal bug-hunting teams, used external auditors to vet its code and ran "bug-a-thons" to hunt out mistakes but it regularly received reports about glitches from independent security researchers.
Facebook set up a system to handle these reports in 2010 which promised not to take legal action against those that find bugs and gave it chance to assess them.
Paying those that report problems was the logical next step for the disclosure system, he said.
Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos, said many other firms, including Google and Mozilla, run similar schemes that have proved useful in rooting out bugs.
However, he said, many criminally-minded bug spotters might get more for what they find if they sell the knowledge on an underground market.
He added that the bug bounty scheme might be missing the biggest source of security problems on Facebook.
"They're specifically not going to reward people for identifying rogue third party Facebook apps, clickjacking scams and the like," he said. "It's those sorts of problems which are much more commonly encountered by Facebook users and have arguably impacted more people."
Facebook should consider setting up a "walled garden" that only allowed vetted applications from approved developers to connect to the social networking site, he said.
"Facebook claims there are over one million developers on the Facebook platform, so it's hardly surprising that the service is riddled with rogue apps and viral scams," he said.
Melbourne edges out Vancouver to top liveable city list
The Australian city of Melbourne has beaten Canada's Vancouver to the title of world's most liveable city for the first time in almost a decade.
Vancouver has topped the annual Global Liveability Survey since 2002, but this year fell to third behind Vienna.
Overall, Australian and Canadian cities did well, capturing seven of the top ten spots.
Harare, Port Moresby and Dhaka occupied the bottom of the table.
The cities were assessed in five categories - stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education and infrastructure.
Vancouver missed out on the top spot because its infrastructure score had fallen due to periodic closures of a key motorway.
Continue reading the main story
MOST LIVEABLE CITIES 2011
1: Melbourne
2: Vienna
3: Vancouver
4: Toronto
5: Calgary
6: Sydney
7: Helsinki
8: Perth
9: Adelaide
10: Auckland
Source: Global Liveability Survey
London was ranked 53, out of 140 cities surveyed. Honolulu, at 26, was the top US city.
The Economist Intelligence Unit, which carried out the survey, said scores in Europe had been pushed slightly down by the eurozone crisis, while the Arab Spring had affected ratings across the Middle East and North Africa.
"Australia, with a low population density and relatively low crime rates, continues to supply some of the world's most liveable cities," report editor Jon Copestake said in a statement.
"Despite the rising cost of living driven by the strong Australian dollar, these cities offer a range of factors to make them highly attractive."
Melbourne was a joint winner with Vancouver in 2002.
Mayor Robert Doyle said he was "absolutely delighted" with the news.
''For the first time in a decade we are now officially ranked number one,'' he said. ''When you think the strong Aussie dollar militates against this, this is even more impressive."
Cities were scored out of 100 and the report noted that the top 10 cities were only separated by 1.8 percentage points.
Vancouver has topped the annual Global Liveability Survey since 2002, but this year fell to third behind Vienna.
Overall, Australian and Canadian cities did well, capturing seven of the top ten spots.
Harare, Port Moresby and Dhaka occupied the bottom of the table.
The cities were assessed in five categories - stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education and infrastructure.
Vancouver missed out on the top spot because its infrastructure score had fallen due to periodic closures of a key motorway.
Continue reading the main story
MOST LIVEABLE CITIES 2011
1: Melbourne
2: Vienna
3: Vancouver
4: Toronto
5: Calgary
6: Sydney
7: Helsinki
8: Perth
9: Adelaide
10: Auckland
Source: Global Liveability Survey
London was ranked 53, out of 140 cities surveyed. Honolulu, at 26, was the top US city.
The Economist Intelligence Unit, which carried out the survey, said scores in Europe had been pushed slightly down by the eurozone crisis, while the Arab Spring had affected ratings across the Middle East and North Africa.
"Australia, with a low population density and relatively low crime rates, continues to supply some of the world's most liveable cities," report editor Jon Copestake said in a statement.
"Despite the rising cost of living driven by the strong Australian dollar, these cities offer a range of factors to make them highly attractive."
Melbourne was a joint winner with Vancouver in 2002.
Mayor Robert Doyle said he was "absolutely delighted" with the news.
''For the first time in a decade we are now officially ranked number one,'' he said. ''When you think the strong Aussie dollar militates against this, this is even more impressive."
Cities were scored out of 100 and the report noted that the top 10 cities were only separated by 1.8 percentage points.
Chocolate may protect the brain and heart
Eating high levels of chocolate could reduce the risk of coronary heart disease and stroke, according to a review of previous research.
Data from 114,009 patients suggested risk was cut by about a third, according to a study published on the BMJ website.
But the researchers warned that excessive consumption would result in other illnesses.
The British Heart Foundation said there were better ways to protect the heart.
The analysis, conducted by scientists at the University of Cambridge, compared the risk to the brain and heart in groups of people who reported eating low levels of chocolate, fewer than two bars per week, with those eating high levels - more than two bars per week.
Chocolate shield
It showed that the "highest levels of chocolate consumption were associated with a 37% reduction in cardiovascular disease and a 29% reduction in stroke compared with the lowest levels".
Continue reading the main story
“
Start Quote
If you want to reduce your heart disease risk, there are much better places to start than at the bottom of a box of chocolates”
Victoria Taylor
British Heart Foundation
One of the researchers, Dr Oscar Franco, said chocolate was known to decrease blood pressure.
He told the BBC the findings were "promising", but needed further research to confirm any protective effect.
The study also warns that chocolate can lead to weight gain and Type 2 diabetes. It suggested that chocolate could one day be used to protect from heart problems and stroke - if the sugar and fat content of chocolate bars was reduced.
Dr Franco added: "The advice if you don't eat chocolate is not to start eating chocolate."
For those who did eat chocolate, he recommended that they should "avoid binge-eating" and eat "small amounts [of chocolate] on a regular basis".
Victoria Taylor, senior heart health dietician at the British Heart Foundation, said: "Evidence does suggest chocolate might have some heart health benefits but we need to find out why that might be.
"We can't start advising people to eat lots of chocolate based on this research.
"It didn't explore what it is about chocolate that could help and if one particular type of chocolate is better than another.
"If you want to reduce your heart disease risk, there are much better places to start than at the bottom of a box of chocolates."
Data from 114,009 patients suggested risk was cut by about a third, according to a study published on the BMJ website.
But the researchers warned that excessive consumption would result in other illnesses.
The British Heart Foundation said there were better ways to protect the heart.
The analysis, conducted by scientists at the University of Cambridge, compared the risk to the brain and heart in groups of people who reported eating low levels of chocolate, fewer than two bars per week, with those eating high levels - more than two bars per week.
Chocolate shield
It showed that the "highest levels of chocolate consumption were associated with a 37% reduction in cardiovascular disease and a 29% reduction in stroke compared with the lowest levels".
Continue reading the main story
“
Start Quote
If you want to reduce your heart disease risk, there are much better places to start than at the bottom of a box of chocolates”
Victoria Taylor
British Heart Foundation
One of the researchers, Dr Oscar Franco, said chocolate was known to decrease blood pressure.
He told the BBC the findings were "promising", but needed further research to confirm any protective effect.
The study also warns that chocolate can lead to weight gain and Type 2 diabetes. It suggested that chocolate could one day be used to protect from heart problems and stroke - if the sugar and fat content of chocolate bars was reduced.
Dr Franco added: "The advice if you don't eat chocolate is not to start eating chocolate."
For those who did eat chocolate, he recommended that they should "avoid binge-eating" and eat "small amounts [of chocolate] on a regular basis".
Victoria Taylor, senior heart health dietician at the British Heart Foundation, said: "Evidence does suggest chocolate might have some heart health benefits but we need to find out why that might be.
"We can't start advising people to eat lots of chocolate based on this research.
"It didn't explore what it is about chocolate that could help and if one particular type of chocolate is better than another.
"If you want to reduce your heart disease risk, there are much better places to start than at the bottom of a box of chocolates."
World Athletics 2011: Jessica Ennis edged out in Daegu
London 2012 gold medal hopeful Jessica Ennis lost her heptathlon world title to Russia's Tatyana Chernova in Daegu.
Ennis finished 129 points adrift after a poor javelin effort left her needing an exceptional 800m run to take gold.
The 25-year-old was less than a second clear of Chernova, with a nine-second margin required to snatch victory.
"I'm going to work hard at all the events and make sure I'm strong next year. I've evaluated it and I'm not too disappointed," said Britain's Ennis.
Javelin cost me gold - Ennis
Her hopes of becoming the first British women to defend a world title were slim before the final event with Chernova's personal best over two laps a full two seconds faster than her own previous fastest time.
The Sheffield athlete duly launched an ambitious attack after a swift first lap and opened a lead of about 10 metres on Chernova before the pace took its toll in the home straight.
"I knew it would be very, very difficult. I was being realistic but I had to give it everything and leave everything on the track," she said.
Ennis had led the points standings before a disappointing 39.95m, 13m short of Chernova's best throw, in the penultimate event - the javelin.
ENNIS IN DAEGU
Continue reading the main story EVENT RESULT PRE-EVENT PB
100m H
12.94 secs
12.79 secs
High jump
1.86m
1.95m
Shot put
14.67m
14.61m
200m
23.27 secs
23.11 secs
Long jump
6.51m
6.51m
Javelin
39.95m
46.71m
800m
2:07.81
2:08.46
Points
6751
6823
"Javelin has been one of my weaker events but I've never performed that poorly," she told BBC Radio 5 live. "But it's not something I'm going to overanalyse."
She added: "I have been in a few heptathlons now and they have ended up going in very different ways - I was leading in Berlin from start to finish and now here.
"It has been a massive learning curve."
Ennis, who won gold at European championships in 2010, finished on 6751 points, 129 adrift of Chernova, with Jennifer Oeser of Germany taking bronze with 6,572 points.
There were positive signs for Ennis heading into next summer's Olympics with a personal best in the shot put as well as in the 800m.
Her points total was also 20 more than the score that proved enough for victory in Berlin two years ago.
But even her personal best of 6,823 would not have been enough to wrestle gold from 23-year-old Chernova.
TOM FORDYCE'S BLOG
Continue reading the main story
Gold-medal favourite Jessica Ennis saw her dreams of a world title ebb away on the final straight of Daegu National Stadium. For those who have watched her storm to World and European gold, and for those who had prematurely hung next summer's Olympic gold around her neck, it may have been something of a shock
Read more from Tom's blog
Commonwealth champion Louise Hazel, competing in her first World Championships, finished 15th with 6,149 points, 17 short of her personal best.
Elsewhere European and Commonwealth champion Dai Greene won one of three 400m hurdles semi-finals in a time of 48.62 seconds.
The Welshman's time was only bettered by Puerto Rico's Javier Culson ahead of the final at 1330 BST on Thursday, but Greene's compatriots Jack Green and Nathan Woodward failed to clock a time good enough to join him.
In the women's 400m hurdles, European bronze medallist Perri Shakes-Drayton was 0.01 seconds away from a place in the final as a fastest loser, while team-mate Eilidh Child also missed out.
Ennis' World silver blessing in disguise - Sotherton
European indoor 3,000m champion Helen Clitheroe advanced to the final of the 5,000m as a fastest loser after coming home eighth in her heat, while Cuban-born 39-year-old Yamile Aldama, cleared to compete for Britain earlier this summer, reached the triple jump final.Battling Ennis loses world title
In the women's 1,500m, Hannah England reached the final as a fastest loser after a gutsy finish down the home straight carried her to sixth in the second semi-final.
Brett Morse was 12th in the discus final, while Barbara Parker ended 14th in the 3,000m steeplechase.
Tom Parsons and Martyn Bernard went out of high jump qualifying, and James Shane failed to progress in the 1500m after missing out on a fastest loser's place by nine one-hundredths of a second.
Ennis finished 129 points adrift after a poor javelin effort left her needing an exceptional 800m run to take gold.
The 25-year-old was less than a second clear of Chernova, with a nine-second margin required to snatch victory.
"I'm going to work hard at all the events and make sure I'm strong next year. I've evaluated it and I'm not too disappointed," said Britain's Ennis.
Javelin cost me gold - Ennis
Her hopes of becoming the first British women to defend a world title were slim before the final event with Chernova's personal best over two laps a full two seconds faster than her own previous fastest time.
The Sheffield athlete duly launched an ambitious attack after a swift first lap and opened a lead of about 10 metres on Chernova before the pace took its toll in the home straight.
"I knew it would be very, very difficult. I was being realistic but I had to give it everything and leave everything on the track," she said.
Ennis had led the points standings before a disappointing 39.95m, 13m short of Chernova's best throw, in the penultimate event - the javelin.
ENNIS IN DAEGU
Continue reading the main story EVENT RESULT PRE-EVENT PB
100m H
12.94 secs
12.79 secs
High jump
1.86m
1.95m
Shot put
14.67m
14.61m
200m
23.27 secs
23.11 secs
Long jump
6.51m
6.51m
Javelin
39.95m
46.71m
800m
2:07.81
2:08.46
Points
6751
6823
"Javelin has been one of my weaker events but I've never performed that poorly," she told BBC Radio 5 live. "But it's not something I'm going to overanalyse."
She added: "I have been in a few heptathlons now and they have ended up going in very different ways - I was leading in Berlin from start to finish and now here.
"It has been a massive learning curve."
Ennis, who won gold at European championships in 2010, finished on 6751 points, 129 adrift of Chernova, with Jennifer Oeser of Germany taking bronze with 6,572 points.
There were positive signs for Ennis heading into next summer's Olympics with a personal best in the shot put as well as in the 800m.
Her points total was also 20 more than the score that proved enough for victory in Berlin two years ago.
But even her personal best of 6,823 would not have been enough to wrestle gold from 23-year-old Chernova.
TOM FORDYCE'S BLOG
Continue reading the main story
Gold-medal favourite Jessica Ennis saw her dreams of a world title ebb away on the final straight of Daegu National Stadium. For those who have watched her storm to World and European gold, and for those who had prematurely hung next summer's Olympic gold around her neck, it may have been something of a shock
Read more from Tom's blog
Commonwealth champion Louise Hazel, competing in her first World Championships, finished 15th with 6,149 points, 17 short of her personal best.
Elsewhere European and Commonwealth champion Dai Greene won one of three 400m hurdles semi-finals in a time of 48.62 seconds.
The Welshman's time was only bettered by Puerto Rico's Javier Culson ahead of the final at 1330 BST on Thursday, but Greene's compatriots Jack Green and Nathan Woodward failed to clock a time good enough to join him.
In the women's 400m hurdles, European bronze medallist Perri Shakes-Drayton was 0.01 seconds away from a place in the final as a fastest loser, while team-mate Eilidh Child also missed out.
Ennis' World silver blessing in disguise - Sotherton
European indoor 3,000m champion Helen Clitheroe advanced to the final of the 5,000m as a fastest loser after coming home eighth in her heat, while Cuban-born 39-year-old Yamile Aldama, cleared to compete for Britain earlier this summer, reached the triple jump final.Battling Ennis loses world title
In the women's 1,500m, Hannah England reached the final as a fastest loser after a gutsy finish down the home straight carried her to sixth in the second semi-final.
Brett Morse was 12th in the discus final, while Barbara Parker ended 14th in the 3,000m steeplechase.
Tom Parsons and Martyn Bernard went out of high jump qualifying, and James Shane failed to progress in the 1500m after missing out on a fastest loser's place by nine one-hundredths of a second.
Irene floods: Vermont and New York await Fema help
Rescue efforts are intensifying in flood-hit parts of the north-eastern US, as the death toll continues to rise two days after a fierce storm.
Authorities have struggled to deliver supplies to Vermont and to New York towns isolated by washed-away roads.
Tropical Storm Irene killed 40 people in the US and caused billions of dollars worth of damage.
President Barack Obama pledged stricken areas would have "the support they need as people recover".
"A lot of our fellow citizens are still reeling from Hurricane Irene and its aftermath," he told an audience of military veterans in Minneapolis.
"Folks are surveying the damage and some are dealing with tremendous flooding. As a government, we're going to make sure that states and communities have the support they need so that folks can recover."
Mr Obama's remarks came a day after the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) warned of shortfalls in a disaster relief fund.
The agency's director Craig Fugate is due to visit Vermont on Tuesday, after warning that some projects to rebuild areas of the Midwest struck by tornados earlier in the year could be postponed.
'Long slog ahead'
At the White House on Monday, Mr Fugate warned that Fema funds are to be directed towards "immediate needs".
The mountain town of Keene, New York, was effectively isolated by damaged roads
"We are not taking any money away from survivors," Mr Fugate said, denying that the agency was diverting funds from previous disaster survivors to fund the Irene recovery.
In Vermont, a small, mostly rural and mountainous state, more than a dozen small towns and villages remained isolated on Tuesday after roads and bridges leading in and out were washed away.
"We've got a long slog ahead," Governor Peter Shumlin told MSNBC television on Tuesday. "Irene really whacked us hard."
The state was reeling from the worst floods since 1927, and officials warned some rivers and creeks there had yet to crest.
Mr Fugate was scheduled to fly to Vermont to assess the damage and disaster relief needs, Mr Shumlin said.
Also, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will visit North Carolina and Virginia to survey the storm damage.
Canada's storm
Irene passed into Canada on Sunday, after causing havoc on the US east coast from North Carolina to Vermont.
Scott Snyder from the American Red Cross: "Some rivers are still rising"
In eastern Canada, crews have begun cleaning up debris and working to restore electricity to thousands who lost power. Meanwhile, Canada's first Irene-related fatality has been recorded.
A man was swept away in Yamaska, north-east of Montreal, as two cars plunged into a chasm created when a road was washed away, Quebec police said.
In the US, a tally by the Associated Press news agency found that 40 people had been killed in 11 US states, mostly because of falling trees, ocean waves, downed power lines and raging floods.
Driving rains and flood tides damaged homes and cut power to more than three million people in New Jersey, Connecticut and New York alone.
Continue reading the main story
Storm tragedies
Celena Sylvestri, 20, drowned when her car filled with water on a flooded New Jersey road. She had called her boyfriend and 911 for help.
A New York man was electrocuted when he tried to rescue a child on a street with downed power lines.
Two men in Florida drowned as they tried to swim or surf rough waves.
Seven people were crushed by falling trees in Pennsylvania and Virginia.
Meanwhile, nearly 100 people remained stranded in mountain towns in New York State due to washed out roads and bridges. The storm dumped 13in of rain on the state.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said dozens of bridges and roadways would need to be repaired and that some of the state's rivers had yet to crest from flooding.
"You're going see more damage before it starts to get better," he told reporters on Monday.
Insurance claims could top $7bn (£4.3bn), the Consumer Federation of America estimated.
Claims for wind damage are expected to be one sixth of the total sum from Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and claims for flood damage one tenth, the CFA estimated.
Authorities have struggled to deliver supplies to Vermont and to New York towns isolated by washed-away roads.
Tropical Storm Irene killed 40 people in the US and caused billions of dollars worth of damage.
President Barack Obama pledged stricken areas would have "the support they need as people recover".
"A lot of our fellow citizens are still reeling from Hurricane Irene and its aftermath," he told an audience of military veterans in Minneapolis.
"Folks are surveying the damage and some are dealing with tremendous flooding. As a government, we're going to make sure that states and communities have the support they need so that folks can recover."
Mr Obama's remarks came a day after the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) warned of shortfalls in a disaster relief fund.
The agency's director Craig Fugate is due to visit Vermont on Tuesday, after warning that some projects to rebuild areas of the Midwest struck by tornados earlier in the year could be postponed.
'Long slog ahead'
At the White House on Monday, Mr Fugate warned that Fema funds are to be directed towards "immediate needs".
The mountain town of Keene, New York, was effectively isolated by damaged roads
"We are not taking any money away from survivors," Mr Fugate said, denying that the agency was diverting funds from previous disaster survivors to fund the Irene recovery.
In Vermont, a small, mostly rural and mountainous state, more than a dozen small towns and villages remained isolated on Tuesday after roads and bridges leading in and out were washed away.
"We've got a long slog ahead," Governor Peter Shumlin told MSNBC television on Tuesday. "Irene really whacked us hard."
The state was reeling from the worst floods since 1927, and officials warned some rivers and creeks there had yet to crest.
Mr Fugate was scheduled to fly to Vermont to assess the damage and disaster relief needs, Mr Shumlin said.
Also, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will visit North Carolina and Virginia to survey the storm damage.
Canada's storm
Irene passed into Canada on Sunday, after causing havoc on the US east coast from North Carolina to Vermont.
Scott Snyder from the American Red Cross: "Some rivers are still rising"
In eastern Canada, crews have begun cleaning up debris and working to restore electricity to thousands who lost power. Meanwhile, Canada's first Irene-related fatality has been recorded.
A man was swept away in Yamaska, north-east of Montreal, as two cars plunged into a chasm created when a road was washed away, Quebec police said.
In the US, a tally by the Associated Press news agency found that 40 people had been killed in 11 US states, mostly because of falling trees, ocean waves, downed power lines and raging floods.
Driving rains and flood tides damaged homes and cut power to more than three million people in New Jersey, Connecticut and New York alone.
Continue reading the main story
Storm tragedies
Celena Sylvestri, 20, drowned when her car filled with water on a flooded New Jersey road. She had called her boyfriend and 911 for help.
A New York man was electrocuted when he tried to rescue a child on a street with downed power lines.
Two men in Florida drowned as they tried to swim or surf rough waves.
Seven people were crushed by falling trees in Pennsylvania and Virginia.
Meanwhile, nearly 100 people remained stranded in mountain towns in New York State due to washed out roads and bridges. The storm dumped 13in of rain on the state.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said dozens of bridges and roadways would need to be repaired and that some of the state's rivers had yet to crest from flooding.
"You're going see more damage before it starts to get better," he told reporters on Monday.
Insurance claims could top $7bn (£4.3bn), the Consumer Federation of America estimated.
Claims for wind damage are expected to be one sixth of the total sum from Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and claims for flood damage one tenth, the CFA estimated.
Muslims today and Muslims in the past
The time is over when we used to make advancements compelling the world powers to retreat. Those precious moments have gone far away from us on account of our carelessness, love for the wealth and the world. It was a time when the entire world advertently or inadvertently was compelled to follow us. We had challenged the Greek civilization, we had called Azans in whole of Hindustan, we had offered prayers at each and every spot of the earth, we had eliminated the centuries-old culture of Egypt, defeated the enemy at all fronts, we had changed the environment of Rome and Iran through our slogans of Allah-o-Akbar and recitation of holy words, our sword had its impact on the entire world from the Arab to non-Arab world, our horses had entered the oceans of brutality to eliminate injustices from the earth, we had taught new tactics and styles of living with dignity to the world nations, we had set examples of bravery, and we had introduced new rules of war.
But today we are at the defensive side. We do celebrate the Defence Day, but we do not take initiative and so we do never observe any day around the year, which could be called the Day of Advancement. We had come forward as the rescuer of the humanity, but today we are waiting for others to come for our rescue. We are the one who were assigned to show right path to the humanity from east to west, but today we are loitering hapless waiting for foreign help. We are the one that our shepherds were even had ability to lead the community, but today we do not have our ‘Imams’ (leaders). Those who had crushed the ‘white paper’ under their feet, are now standing in front of the White House with begging bowls in their hands. Those who had a kind and soft heart for the oppressed are now looking for a kind-hearted person. Those who had all hopes on just one Allah, are now looking towards hundreds of thousands others for help. Those who were stronger than storms and calamities, are unable today to sustain even a small blow of the wind and close eyes seeing the danger. We have become so coward that we take the unwanted changes in the political and worldly development as our unnatural death. We are the one who eliminated slavery from the world are now becoming slaves of the super powers.
The world knows that Muslims used to fight without food and water a hundred times bigger and stronger enemies on foot and used to defeat them in all battlefields but now despite having all resources of the world we have become spiritless.
If we recall the Islamic History, we remember that there were only 313 Muslims during ‘Badr War’. And these fistful Muslims had only two horses, 70 camels, eight swords and six armour chains. While the battalion of the enemy in that war was bigger. Still the Muslims stood victorious. In ‘Ohd War’, the battalion of Muslims comprised only 700 warriors, while the battalion of the enemy comprised 3,000 fully armed men. But the Muslims made them run from the battlefield. In ‘Khandaq War’, there were only 3,000 Muslims while the forces of enemy comprised 24,000 warriors. But the Muslims had courage and won the battle. In ‘Khyber War’, Muslims were not more than 1600 troops, who fought 20,000 Jews and still the Muslims stood victorious and captured the Khyber. In ‘Qudsiya War’, Muslim troops were a little over 30,000, while there were more than 100,000 Iranian warriors against Muslims who ultimately had to retreat and Muslims stood victorious.
In ‘Yarmook War’, 32,000 Muslims defeated 200,000 Romans. (Some historians have written the figure of Romans as 700,000 out of which 500,000 were killed while 40,000 were captured). In ‘Spain War’, 12,000 Muslims, led by Tariq bin Ziyad, who was a small follower of Hazrat Moosa bin Naseer (rahmatullahi), fought an army of 100,000 troops of the enemy who were armed with latest war gadgets. Christians cannot deny the fact that Muslims, thousands of miles away from their homeland, fought a war with them and defeated them at all fronts. What was the reason that every single Muslim was heavier than a hundred troops of the enemy? What was the reason that Muslims had never thought that they were going to wage a war against a hundred times bigger enemy?
The governor of Egypt, during a war, had sought help from Hazrat `Omar bin Al-Aas (radhiallahu ta`ala `anhu) and demanded 30,000 troops. In response to the Egypt governor’s request, Hazrat `Omar (radhiallahu ta`ala `anhu) sent just three men and said initially accept these three thousand. Those three men were: Hazrat Kharja bin Hazafa (radhiallahu ta`ala `anhu), Hazrat Zubair bin Awam (radhiallahu ta`ala `anhu), and Hazrat Maqdad bin Aswad (radhiallahu ta`ala `anhu). These three Muslim warriors really proved heavier than 30,000 troops of the enemy.
The Muslims of yesteryears really had something beyond the courage that turned them heavier than a hundred times bigger army of the non-Muslims. But, today that courage and zeal is not found in the Muslims. We proved our mettle to the enemy at all battlefields and fronts. The enemy knew that fistful Muslims could never be defeated on account of war gadgets. Non-Muslims knew that Muslim forces never retreat, but they fight while closing all their ways of returning home. Muslims fight the enemy after burning their boats because they fight with a vow ‘win or embrace Shahadah (martyrdom)’. The enemy knew that Muslims know how to advance and make the enemy retreat. They only stop when oceans or rivers come in their ways. At this stage they used to pray to Allah Almighty, “Allah, had this ocean not come in our way, we would have continued with waging Jihad against the enemies of Islam and eliminated the non-believers from the earth.”
Nazarenes and Jews were so ashamed of their forefathers’ defeats at the hand of Muslims. But how long such stories and narrations would continue to make them feel ashamed? And how long we would have continued to survive on reminding them such events? At last we are exposed. Our enemies have come to know that Muslims are just hollow and they have no strength, no power. The non-Muslims know that the ancestors of Muslims were practical people while Muslims today depend on lip-serving only. Their ancestors were courageous enough who used to attack enemies like dangerous eagle while Muslims today look for the shelters to hide from the enemy. Those were the Muslims who loved martyrdom and preferred death over cowardice while Muslims today love worldly things. Muslims today do not have that courage that used to make the Muslims in the past heavier over hundreds of enemies.
The saying of Hazrat Muhammad (sallallahu `alaihe wasallam) has come true: “The day is not far away when all non-Muslim nations would get united against Muslims and launch strike jointly.” When somebody questioned the Holy Prophet, “Will it happen because Muslims will be less in number against the enemies?” The Holy Prophet replied: “No, you will be more than the enemy but you will be like foam, which has nothing in it and has no power or strength. Allah Almighty, because of your cowardice, would remove your fear from the hearts of non-Muslim powers and would fill your hearts with cowardice.” Another Sahaba questioned, “Ya Rasoolullah: What would be that weakness?” He replied: “Your weakness would be love for the world.”
Today all of us, our borders, our ideologies, our interests, our generations and the entire Muslim world have become the target of enemies of Islam. We are left just one remedy to this situation that we should change our today with our yesterday. Our zeal and courage can change our fate and this way we can protect better our interests, our religious beliefs, our countries and our generations. No other thing can defend us.
But today we are at the defensive side. We do celebrate the Defence Day, but we do not take initiative and so we do never observe any day around the year, which could be called the Day of Advancement. We had come forward as the rescuer of the humanity, but today we are waiting for others to come for our rescue. We are the one who were assigned to show right path to the humanity from east to west, but today we are loitering hapless waiting for foreign help. We are the one that our shepherds were even had ability to lead the community, but today we do not have our ‘Imams’ (leaders). Those who had crushed the ‘white paper’ under their feet, are now standing in front of the White House with begging bowls in their hands. Those who had a kind and soft heart for the oppressed are now looking for a kind-hearted person. Those who had all hopes on just one Allah, are now looking towards hundreds of thousands others for help. Those who were stronger than storms and calamities, are unable today to sustain even a small blow of the wind and close eyes seeing the danger. We have become so coward that we take the unwanted changes in the political and worldly development as our unnatural death. We are the one who eliminated slavery from the world are now becoming slaves of the super powers.
The world knows that Muslims used to fight without food and water a hundred times bigger and stronger enemies on foot and used to defeat them in all battlefields but now despite having all resources of the world we have become spiritless.
If we recall the Islamic History, we remember that there were only 313 Muslims during ‘Badr War’. And these fistful Muslims had only two horses, 70 camels, eight swords and six armour chains. While the battalion of the enemy in that war was bigger. Still the Muslims stood victorious. In ‘Ohd War’, the battalion of Muslims comprised only 700 warriors, while the battalion of the enemy comprised 3,000 fully armed men. But the Muslims made them run from the battlefield. In ‘Khandaq War’, there were only 3,000 Muslims while the forces of enemy comprised 24,000 warriors. But the Muslims had courage and won the battle. In ‘Khyber War’, Muslims were not more than 1600 troops, who fought 20,000 Jews and still the Muslims stood victorious and captured the Khyber. In ‘Qudsiya War’, Muslim troops were a little over 30,000, while there were more than 100,000 Iranian warriors against Muslims who ultimately had to retreat and Muslims stood victorious.
In ‘Yarmook War’, 32,000 Muslims defeated 200,000 Romans. (Some historians have written the figure of Romans as 700,000 out of which 500,000 were killed while 40,000 were captured). In ‘Spain War’, 12,000 Muslims, led by Tariq bin Ziyad, who was a small follower of Hazrat Moosa bin Naseer (rahmatullahi), fought an army of 100,000 troops of the enemy who were armed with latest war gadgets. Christians cannot deny the fact that Muslims, thousands of miles away from their homeland, fought a war with them and defeated them at all fronts. What was the reason that every single Muslim was heavier than a hundred troops of the enemy? What was the reason that Muslims had never thought that they were going to wage a war against a hundred times bigger enemy?
The governor of Egypt, during a war, had sought help from Hazrat `Omar bin Al-Aas (radhiallahu ta`ala `anhu) and demanded 30,000 troops. In response to the Egypt governor’s request, Hazrat `Omar (radhiallahu ta`ala `anhu) sent just three men and said initially accept these three thousand. Those three men were: Hazrat Kharja bin Hazafa (radhiallahu ta`ala `anhu), Hazrat Zubair bin Awam (radhiallahu ta`ala `anhu), and Hazrat Maqdad bin Aswad (radhiallahu ta`ala `anhu). These three Muslim warriors really proved heavier than 30,000 troops of the enemy.
The Muslims of yesteryears really had something beyond the courage that turned them heavier than a hundred times bigger army of the non-Muslims. But, today that courage and zeal is not found in the Muslims. We proved our mettle to the enemy at all battlefields and fronts. The enemy knew that fistful Muslims could never be defeated on account of war gadgets. Non-Muslims knew that Muslim forces never retreat, but they fight while closing all their ways of returning home. Muslims fight the enemy after burning their boats because they fight with a vow ‘win or embrace Shahadah (martyrdom)’. The enemy knew that Muslims know how to advance and make the enemy retreat. They only stop when oceans or rivers come in their ways. At this stage they used to pray to Allah Almighty, “Allah, had this ocean not come in our way, we would have continued with waging Jihad against the enemies of Islam and eliminated the non-believers from the earth.”
Nazarenes and Jews were so ashamed of their forefathers’ defeats at the hand of Muslims. But how long such stories and narrations would continue to make them feel ashamed? And how long we would have continued to survive on reminding them such events? At last we are exposed. Our enemies have come to know that Muslims are just hollow and they have no strength, no power. The non-Muslims know that the ancestors of Muslims were practical people while Muslims today depend on lip-serving only. Their ancestors were courageous enough who used to attack enemies like dangerous eagle while Muslims today look for the shelters to hide from the enemy. Those were the Muslims who loved martyrdom and preferred death over cowardice while Muslims today love worldly things. Muslims today do not have that courage that used to make the Muslims in the past heavier over hundreds of enemies.
The saying of Hazrat Muhammad (sallallahu `alaihe wasallam) has come true: “The day is not far away when all non-Muslim nations would get united against Muslims and launch strike jointly.” When somebody questioned the Holy Prophet, “Will it happen because Muslims will be less in number against the enemies?” The Holy Prophet replied: “No, you will be more than the enemy but you will be like foam, which has nothing in it and has no power or strength. Allah Almighty, because of your cowardice, would remove your fear from the hearts of non-Muslim powers and would fill your hearts with cowardice.” Another Sahaba questioned, “Ya Rasoolullah: What would be that weakness?” He replied: “Your weakness would be love for the world.”
Today all of us, our borders, our ideologies, our interests, our generations and the entire Muslim world have become the target of enemies of Islam. We are left just one remedy to this situation that we should change our today with our yesterday. Our zeal and courage can change our fate and this way we can protect better our interests, our religious beliefs, our countries and our generations. No other thing can defend us.
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